The Infiltration Team
by Smartasswolf23
Summary: What do you get when you combine the prodigies of the Nara, Yamanaka, and Aburame clans? The best infiltration team across the Five Great Shinobi Countries. If only their sensei wasn't insane, or at least they thought so.
1. Graduation Day

Story Summary: What do you get when you combine the prodigies of the Nara, Yamanaka, and Aburame clans? The best infiltration team across the Five Great Shinobi Countries. Now if only they could stop arguing for 5 minutes.

Author's Note: First and foremost; I don't own anything. All characters belong to the guy that created them. Now, this story is AU, and some of the personality traits of the characters are going to be different. I also want to thank Varmint for agreeing to be my Beta for this story!

"…" Talking

'…' Thought

 _Mind reading/transfer_

 **Location**

Please read and review!

* * *

 **Academy Grounds (The day before graduation):**

"Alright class this is our last taijutsu tournament before graduation. You will be graded on this," Iruka said as the class stood before him.

In just two days, they would all be sorted into teams and sent off to their Jōnin instructors. He was surprised at this years' class, quite a few of them were considered prodigies in their respected clans. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't a touch worried about all of the students, but he knew without a doubt some of them would become legends someday.

"Alright now that everyone's stretched, first match of the day: Hyuga vs Haruno."

And thus the tournament began.

*Few hours later*

"Last match of the day: Aburame vs. Yamanaka"- He looked at both fighters and began motioning to them- "Fighters to the ring."

Ino stepped into the ring first, flipping her long blonde hair over her shoulder while wearing a smirk that screamed of confidence in her abilities to win. Shino followed behind her towards the ring with a smirk of his own. He knew his training with Toroune was going to pay off with this fight.

"Begin!"

Ino rushed first, feinting to the left then aimed a right hook to his ribs. Shino blocked as he tried to sweep her legs out but she back flipped away from him. He pressed forward and tried to jab at her, but she caught his arm then used his thigh as a step up and jumped onto his shoulders. She twisted her hips as she swung her body weight down towards the ground. And once she caused both of them to fall to the ground, she caught his left arm and locked it in an arm bar move while she used her thighs to press against the carotid artery in his neck.

Knowing he only had a few seconds before he blacked out; he reached out with his right hand and hit the pressure point on right side of her ribs. Gritting her teeth through the pain, she pressed harder against the artery in his neck in retaliation and twisted his left arm up to a point that a little more pressure would surely break it. As his vision began to blacken, he used his weight and height against the smaller girl. Picking her up slightly, he slammed her down on the mat as hard as he could.

Her legs loosened around his neck and this created the opening he needed to win. Quickly he flipped over the girl, pulled her up, wrapped his arm around her neck and put her into a headlock.

As she started to struggle to breathe, she tried to flip him over her head; but he held her a few inches above the ground so she couldn't touch the floor. She choked out, "I yield," right as she lost consciousness.

Immediately he loosened his grip and set her down on the mat; keeping her upright. He waited until her breathing had steadied out and, when she nodded at him, he took it as the signal it was. Ino was fine.

Grabbing her hand, he easily pulled her to her feet. "One of these days, I will win against you;" she told the bug nin.

"Winner is Shino Aburame" Iruka announced, not in the least surprised since the boy was easily one of the best taijutsu users in this class.

Both students exited the ring together as the class began to clap for them. Shikamaru caught Ino's attention and nodded at the girl, knowing she had tried her hardest against Shino. As she made her way over towards him, she saw Kiba handing over some money to the shadow nin while looking disgruntled by it.

"You bet against me," she accused her best friend as she poked him in the chest.

"I was rooting for you in the beginning;" he told her easily, as they fell into step with each other and headed back inside to the classroom. She snorted at his answer and gave him a scathing look that told him she didn't believe a word of it.

"Alright class line up, alphabetical order. We're going to start the last test of the day now. I'll call you in one at a time," Iruka asked of the class. Stepping into the classroom, he sealed the room to keep it soundproof so the students wouldn't know what the test was.

"Aburame!" the teacher called out, once he opened the door. Shino walked in past him and towards the chair that stood in the middle of the classroom. Shutting the door, Iruka took his place at the podium in front of the chair. Once he was settled, the man told Shino to take a seat.

"This test will be a genjutsu test. The first portion of it, I'm going to place you in a genjutsu and you have to break it in under a minute. The second portion, you have to place a genjutsu on me, and try to keep it up for a minute. The test will start when you say ready."

Nodding his head, the Aburame heir began his final test of the day.

* * *

 **Hokage's Office:**

Never in his life had Genma Shiranui felt as though he was being punished like he was now. "But sir, with all due respect, I'm not even a Jōnin!" He tried to reason with the third Hokage.

"Congratulations you've just been promoted, Shiranui;" the third replied back dryly.

"Why me though? Surely there are others who are better equipped to dealing with a bunch of prepubescent monsters?" He asked, truly wondering how he had been unfortunate enough to get wrangled into babysitting a bunch of wannabe shinobi brats.

"I'll give you three reasons. One: I said so. Two: You're the best at infiltration other than Anko and she's away right now. Three: If you don't, I'll let Ibiki play with your head." Hiruzen told the complaining brunette, not exactly intent on following through with the last one. He liked having his bodyguards of sound mind; not that they _really needed_ to know that.

The idea of having the Head of T&I in his head sent shudders through Genma, and he respectfully bowed to the Hokage. "Do you have a file on the team?" He asked, only for the file to hit him squarely in the chest.

"Memorize it."

Was the only order given before he was shooed out of the room.

Raising his hand, he did a quick a seal and teleported back to his apartment. Once back in his humble abode, Genma set the file down on his table, then moved around his kitchen to make some lunch. He grabbed the left over pumpkin curry in his fridge, then set about heating it up.

Once he made a bowl of food, the recently promoted Jōnin went back over to the table. Settling comfortably on the chair, he flipped the file open, then began to read as he ate.

* * *

 **Academy Grounds**

Iruka poked his head outside of the classroom and motioned for the last student to follow him in. As Ino took her spot in the chair, Iruka explained the test to her.

Once it had been explained, the girl nodded her head to show she was ready for the test and the teacher began the genjutsu. It was the Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique. It showed the victim their darkest nightmares.

Ino watched patiently as leaves swirled in front of her face. Once her head dropped, the illusion began.

When she opened her eyes again, the girl was still in the classroom. It was loud as the students sitting behind her began to talk, and she turned around to and get the attention of her classmate. Only to have them ignore her. They weren't acknowledging her as they began to insult the blonde.

"Why does she dress like that? She looks horrible."

"She is such a showoff. _No one_ likes her."

"She'll just slow down whatever team she's on."

"She ruined our friendship because she liked Sasuke-kun. He'll never like her anyway."

"The blonde princess can't do _anything_ without _everyone_ having to know about it."

"She'll never be good enough. Not for a shinobi and _certainly_ not for a clan leader."

As the insults kept repeating, Ino felt herself becoming angered at what her classmates were saying. Then she felt the slight push of someone else's chakra against her and remembered she was in a genjutsu.

"Kai!" the girl all but screamed, breaking the illusion in a matter of seconds.

"Alright Ino now it's your turn to cast one on me. Remember: try to keep me under for a minute." Iruka told the girl, not surprised in the slightest that she had broken the jutsu cast in record time.

Ino concentrated her Yin chakra, and then made eye contact with her sensei and took over his chakra channels. She began in his appendages, making them feel heavier than usual. Then the feeling slowly worked its way throughout his entire body. Once she had spread the heaviness throughout his body, she began layering it with the urge to sleep.

Iruka felt his eyes growing heavier, and honestly felt as though it was a great time for a nap. Folding his arms on the podium, he laid his head down to fall asleep.

Ino quickly retreated her chakra once he had laid his head down. And it was that jolt of no longer feeling heavy that made Iruka wake up.

"You've passed Ino. Alright class, that's it for today. Remember tomorrow will be your written tests as well as your ninjutsu test. Make sure you can perform a transformation and a clone technique. I will have the final grades posted in the hall by tomorrow afternoon, once all the testing has been completed." He dismissed the class.

* * *

 **Genma's Apartment:**

As Genma read through the information given for the second time, he began to formulate a plan for how to train these kids. Because if he had to do it, then, dammit, he was going to do it right!

He decided to test their skills at infiltration by having them infiltrate a building in Konoha. The records room was the ideal spot for them. Chuckling darkly, he exited his home and set out to put his plans in motion. But first he would need to find two competent members of Anbu that wouldn't mind hurting some kids.

* * *

 **Yamanaka Compound:**

Ino walked through the front door of her house, happy to finally return to her home. The genjutsu had taken a toll on the young blonde.

Slipping her shoes off, she padded into the living room of her house.

"How did you do?" Inoichi asked his daughter when he saw her, all the while taking note of the bruise around her neck and the few on her arms.

"I was second in the taijutsu tournament and pretty sure I beat everyone's time for breaking the genjutsu." Ino beamed at her father, pride leaking through her voice.

"That's great princess. We'll celebrate tomorrow after graduation." The blonde man promised, then asked, "What would you like to continue studying first, poisons or clan arts?"

Looking thoughtfully at her father, she answered with a curt "poisons first please."

Making their way out of their house, both blondes stepped inside their greenhouse, the pride of their household. Pointing to the first flower, Inoichi raised his eyebrow at Ino, silently urging her to give him a full run down of its uses and effects.

"Actaea pachypoda, also called Doll's Eye. Poison is in the berries. It is a cardiogenic type of poison, this means that it will have a sedative effect on a person's cardiac muscle tissue."

He pointed to another flower. "Brugmansia, also called Angel's trumpet. Its poison is used as a hallucinogenic. People have been ingesting it in tea, and it's easy to overdose on." Taking over for her father, she began walking around the greenhouse, pointing to the different trees, flowers, and plants all the while explaining what they were.

"That's the Strychnos nux-vomica. Otherwise known as the strychnine tree. All parts of the tree are poisonous, however the seed's inside the fruit contain the most poison. The poison can be absorbed through skin. 30 mg is enough to kill a person, with violent convulsions because of stimulation of the sensory ganglia in the spine. Usually starts about 20 minutes after exposure."

And so they went, methodically going through every plant in the room. What the names were, the poisons that were produced, what the symptoms were. They also worked together on coating several kunai, senbon, and shuriken with the harvested poisons. Leaving the greenhouse a few hours later, Inoichi couldn't help but be extremely proud of his daughter. She was going to be a great kunoichi one day. He was sure of it.

Breaking the placid silence that had formed around them, she asked her dad, "So daddy, have you asked out the nice lady yet?"

"W-What?" He spluttered, looking at his daughter with eyes widened in shock.

She laughed at his expression as they made their way back into the house to begin the lesson of clan arts. She really hoped he asked the nice lady out soon. Ino believed that it was high time her father moved on from her mother's death, and he deserved to be happy.

* * *

 **ANBU Headquarters:**

Genma walked into the break room to see if anyone would be willing to help him out the night after tomorrow. As soon as the senbon enthusiast had walked through the door, he found himself walking in on a conversation between Yamato and Kakashi.

"Fellas, I have a favor to ask." Genma started, interrupting the two old friends. "I need two ANBU members to guard to the Records Room the night after tomorrow; either of you interested?" He finished, looking at the two expectantly.

"Why? What's going on?" Kakashi asked, eyes narrowing as he looked at the senbon user.

"Well long story short, I am now the leader of a new genin team. Apparently they want this team to be the infiltration team and I need two ANBU to guard the record room while they try to break in." Genma told them casually, "I need people who can make this hard but not to the point of impossible," was added as an afterthought.

"We can help with that." Kakashi immediately answered for Yamato and himself. It would be a good workout, besides he was slightly curious about this years' graduates. Apparently quite a few of them are prodigies in their own right.

"Awesome, I'll leave the planning and execution up to you." Genma said, grateful he didn't have to go find anyone else.

"Just buy the next round at the bar and we'll consider it even." Kakashi answered back with a smirk.

* * *

 **Academy Grounds (Graduation Day)**

"Alright kids, we have a lot to do today. First thing is you taking the written test, to make sure you actually remember something from all of the classes you've been taking. The second test you will be completing is a ninjutsu test, remember it will be a transformation and a clone technique today." Iruka told the class once everyone was settled into their seats. Once the tests had been handed out, he spoke again, "The written test will begin now. You have two hours to complete the test. Good luck."

* * *

 **Academy Grounds (Later that night)**

Iruka was still trying to figure out how to place the teams. He was happy he let Naruto graduate with the rest of the class, but it was seriously throwing everything off. Not to mention he had orders from the Hokage to put the top three students onto a team together.

Deciding it would be easier to start with the mandatory team first, he began to write down the teams.

* * *

"Now that everyone is a genin, I'll be announcing the teams you will be on until you reach chunin. I just wanted you to know how proud I am of each of you. You have shown remarkable talent and Will of Fire throughout our small journey together. It was honor to have you as my students." Iruka told his students with a genuine smile, then continued, "Team 3: Aburame, Shino. Nara, Shikamaru. Yamanaka, Ino.

Team 8: Akimichi, Chouji. Hyuga, Hinata. Uchiha, Sasuke.

Team 10: Haruno, Sakura. Inuzuka, Kiba. Uzumaki, Naruto.

Team 3 you will meet your sensei here after lunch. Team 8, you'll meet yours out on the training field. Team 10, you'll meet yours in the classroom at the end of the hall."

* * *

Next Chapter: Meeting the Sensei. Enter Shiranui, Genma.

Excerpt: "So you want us to break into the Records Room underneath Hokage tower..." Ino breathed out, unsure if she was asking or just repeating the task, while she looked at their new sensei incredulously.

"Yeah, you're the new infiltration team. So you need to know how to _infiltrate_ buildings and shit." Genma answered offhandedly with a wave of his hand.

Author's Note: Please read and review! Have a great day everyone.


	2. Meeting the Sensei

Author's Note: Thank you to all that reviewed, and started following my story. Also thank you to my beta Varmint. Because without, this story would not be that great. I don't own anything, if I did the ending of Naruto would have been a lot different.

'…' Thought

"…" Speaking

 _Mind transfer/mind reading_

 **Location**

* * *

 **Academy Grounds**

Ino sighed as she looked at the two boys that occupied the room with her. The silence was stifling and seemed filled with tension... Well, tense to _her._ Being forced into such silence was absolute torture to the social butterfly and she tapped her foot against the ground nervously to fill the room with _some_ noise. But it wasn't enough. The silence dragged on. And there seemed to be no end to it.

Just as the impatient girl opened her mouth to break the silence, the door to the room slid open and revealed their new sensei.

... Quite frankly... He wasn't all that fascinating. Especially with the senbon hanging from his lips.

Genma took one look at the group of dispersed children and figured he was in for a rough couple of years. "Sup kids? I'm Genma Shiranui, your new sensei. How about we get to know each other better, since we will all be on the same team for the next couple of years?"

"Did you not get a file on us?" Shino asked, eyes narrowing behind his sunglasses.

"Yeah he did, it would contain all relevant information about us." Shikamaru answered the question with a sigh. Their Jōnin teacher was going to be _troublesome_ if he hadn't even read their files.

Genma frowned at the Nara, then crossed his arms. They were already on the defensive about this... _Great._

"Here's the deal you little monsters, I tell you to do something, you do it. I ask you a question, you answer the damn question. No smartass answers and no questions from you. _Got it_?" He growled at the group, clicking the senbon in his mouth against his teeth in annoyance.

"What if it's illegal, immoral, or unethical?" Asked Ino, eyeing the senbon in his mouth with a look of disgust.

"What did I just tell you about smartass answers girl? Now how about each of you tell me something you're good at." Genma replied with a roll of his eyes, all the while wondering if he had ever been _this much_ of a pain in the ass as a genin.

"I'm good with genjutsu, taijutsu, and poisons." He blinked at her, not having expected those answers; but still filed the information away for later use.

"I'm good enough with ninjutsu, genjutsu, and strategies." Replied Shikamaru with an offhanded sigh, all the while pressing his cheek against his palm.

But even with his seeming lack of interest, Genma noted how the boy kept his gaze on him. And this caused the man to smirk inwardly.

It didn't surprise him to hear those skills. But the fact that the kid actually seemed _interested_... Hmm... Maybe this wasn't a typical Nara.

Still, Genma figured he'd have fun putting those supposed skills to the test later... If they managed to pass this one.

"I am proficient with taijutsu, ninjutsu, and seals."

The last boy spoke curtly and precisely and Genma found himself looking at dark sunglasses that showed zero emotions.

That would grow annoying quick.

So none of the kids thought it was worth mentioning their own clan techniques to each other. That was a problem for another day though. It was time for them to get down to business.

'So I have an Aburame that can break seals, a Nara that-even though he tries to show otherwise- actually has _some_ interest, and a Yamanaka who could probably kill us all with a smile. This will be _fun_.' Genma thought looking at the three students, allowing his amusement to show in the form of a smirk.

"So here's the truth kiddos, you still haven't completely graduated yet." The man couldn't help but rejoice in the differing looks of dismay that crossed the kids faces. "You see there's another test you have to pass in order to be considered actually genin: _My_ test. And since you have the added benefit of having been put together by the Hokage, I get to make my own kind of test for you. You three have until 7 am tomorrow to break into the Records Room under the Hokage tower and steal a file. It will be in a red folder." The Jōnin smirked as the looks of dismay became looks of horror on each of their faces.

"So you want us to break into the Records Room underneath Hokage tower..." Ino breathed out, unsure if she was asking or just repeating the task, while she looked at their new sensei incredulously.

Glancing around the room, she noted that she wasn't the only one left completely astonished by what had been said by the man. Shikamaru's eyes were wide and his body tense, looking like a completely different person. And... Well... She couldn't really tell how Shino was reacting. Him being mostly covered up made it nearly impossible. But from the way his body was all tensed, she could infer he too was surprised.

"Yeah, you're the new infiltration team. So you need to know how to _infiltrate_ buildings and shit." Genma answered offhandedly with a wave of his hand.

"Sensei, that's treason! If we get caught, they could kill us on sight!" Shikamaru argued, wondering where in the hell they had found this guy and if they could return him.

"So... _Don't_ get caught." The man answered with a shrug. "Remember my little minions: tomorrow morning. 7." Genma finished with a salute.

They all could have sworn that they heard him cackling as he teleported out of the room. When asked later, he would deny any claims.

Once the smoke had cleared, the kids all looked at each other with almost identical looks of disbelief, then began to wonder what in the hell had they signed up for.

After a beat of silence, the only female in the room breathed in and opened her mouth.

"So does anyone have a plan for breaking into the Records Room?" Ino asked her two male counterparts.

They spent a moment in silence, then Shino nodded softly. "We could always use Tora as a distraction." He offered, remembering the times he saw people chasing the infamous cat all over town.

"Great, does anyone know where the cat is?" Shikamaru asked looking at his two new teammates. When they both shook their heads no, he muttered a low 'troublesome', before shaking his head. "Alright then, let's split up and find the stupid cat. We'll meet back here by sunset."

*-()-*

When Ino and Shino arrived at the classroom at the agreed upon hour they weren't exactly empty handed. But... They had not come back with what they had been hunting for. Instead they had stocked up on weapons and items they might need during the infiltration.

"Where is Shikamaru at?" Shino asked the blonde after a few minutes of the boy not arriving. If anyone would know where he was, it would be her.

"I don't know; I ran into him about an hour ago but we separated. I had to go let my dad that we couldn't celebrate tonight since we're doing this stupid test." Ino answered with a huff, beginning to wonder where her last teammate could be..

Right as Shino was going to suggest they go looking for the genius, the door opened and revealed their missing counterpart. He walked into the room and dropped down on the closest desk with a long suffered sigh.

"I found out from some villagers that the Fire Daimyōs' wife isn't in Konoha anymore. She is back home, which means Tora is with her." Shikamaru grouchily told the group. He had missed dinner because of this stupid test.

Ino looked at her friend for a moment before she realized what was wrong with him and threw a bento box in his direction. "Well then I guess our only option at this point is to go to Hokage Tower and make up a plan as we go. Let's eat first though."

* * *

 **Records Room Hallway**

Kakashi and Yamato stood outside the Records Room wearing their regular Jōnin outfits. Kakashi was reading the latest volume of Icha-Icha Paradise. The wood user had to repress the eye roll at the older man. Only _he_ would take on a job like this and bring _that_ book to read.

But there was a bigger problem for Yamato... He was completely and utterly bored. He couldn't believe he had gotten roped into doing this.

Scratch that... he could... But that's because his sempai was a cruel and unusual man.

Becoming fed up with the silence and absurdity of the situation, the man growled at Kakashi, "Why did you agree to this exactly?"

"Genma needed the help." Kakashi shrugged, his one visible eyes not leaving the pages of his book. "Besides... They're just _kids_. What's the worse they can do?" He then asked sarcastically, completely sure of his skills. Especially against three _newly appointed genin._

He should have known he'd regret uttering that sentence sooner or later.

*-()-*

Seeing that the guards were too distracted by their conversation to notice him, Shikamaru used the shadows around the hallway to set up the trap they had decided to be the most efficient. Once everything was in place, he gave the signal to Shino to release the cicadas they had bottled up. Shino opened the jar and seemed to have a conversation with the insects. But Shikamaru didn't question it. Hey, if it worked... After a beat of nothing happening, the insects began to make their way towards the two unsuspecting guards.

Quite frankly, the plan was simple and somewhat elementary. Trained shinobi shouldn't allow themselves to fall for it and Shikamaru knew this. He was just hoping that the guys were as dumb as they seemed.

*-()-*

When they began to hear the sound of cicadas, the two veterans thought nothing of it. It was a warm night after all. But the more time that passed, the closer the sounds became.

"Do those sound closer than usual?" Yamato asked as he looked at Kakashi, the proximity of the distinctive warble like buzz the insects made beginning to worry him.

Just as Kakashi was going to answer, a large bug landed on his book. A cicada to be precise. Looking down the hall, they found it suddenly filled with more of these very bugs. And as if that one bug landing on Kakashi's precious book wasn't enough, it seemed as if the chorus of bugs was heading right to them.

As the bugs began attacking the two Jōnin, they tried swatting them away but more kept coming at them. Running to try and better their chances of getting rid of the flying insects, both men abandoned their posts by the door and headed down the hall. They tried to fight off the army of bugs... But, not only did they look ridiculous swatting and running like children, it was also futile. The little buggers weren't letting up.

The two were so engrossed in trying to get rid of the flying bastards that they didn't see the trap that had been set without them noticing. But they did notice when the thick chords wrapped around their lower legs. Unfortunately, before either man could really process the fact they had just been beaten by three newly appointed genin, both their heads smacked harshly on the floor as they were hoisted up into the air.

*-()-*

Shikamaru couldn't believe those two had been actually been as dumb as they seemed. But he hadn't been the kind to ever look a gift horse in the mouth and motioned quietly for Ino to complete her part of the plan.

The girl quickly darted down the hall and past the bugs that converged over the two guards that now hung upside down. When she reached the door, she wretched it open and disappeared inside. Locating the file took what seemed to be forever for the young girl, but was actually a few seconds. Quickly, she tucked the file into her chest with her left hand, then sprinted back down the hallway to the two boys waiting just around the corner.

As they all took off running, Ino reached into her thigh holster to grab a senbon; just in case they were followed. But what she hadn't realized was that her personal pouch of treated senbon had spilled and mixed in with her normal senbon when she had hastily grabbed them earlier that day.

*-()-*

"They're kids, what's the worse they can do?" Yamato growled while imitating Kakashi, irritated with a headache forming.

"Not a word of this to _anyone_." Kakashi snarled back, feeling like an idiot for never having entertained the idea of those kids ever actually standing a chance.

Yamato was pissed. Kakashi wasn't any better off. And when they heard the familiar laughter of the man that had asked them this favor, their irritation only grew. Of course he would have been watching.

The two came crashing to the ground without any warning, leaving them with dull aches around their body. But that was nothing compared to their wounded pride.

* * *

 **Academy Grounds**

As the three slid into the classroom, they immediately began to put their traps in place. They still weren't sure if they were being followed or not, but the possibility was very real. Ino moved towards the center of the room with the file clutched in one arm to her chest and the senbon in the other as Shikamaru set up traps on the windows and Shino took care of the door.

As she took a breath, she saw a shadow looming above her and felt an unfamiliar chakra signature. It was then she realized that they were not alone in the room. Someone had managed to get through their traps. Without any doubt, the girl gripped her senbon tighter, then twisted her body and buried the senbon in whoever had managed to follow them.

Blue eyes widened in shock and fear as Ino realized who she had just stabbed.

Her senbon was in the arm of her new sensei. She had just stabbed her sensei... This was going to go over _really_ well.

Genma's brown eyes widened as he processed the fact that his brand new little monster had stabbed him. The little brat... He could feel a burning sensation in his limbs and abdomen, and found himself wondering why that might be. Then he remembered, the Yamanaka brat had a penchant for poisons. Well he was _fucked_... and not in a good way.

He hit the ground hard, rather calm considering he had just been poisoned. He wasn't freaking out. He just found himself wondering how long he had to deal with this pain until he died. His reprieve came in the form of unconsciousness.

Ino let out a scream, and both boys turned to see their sensei on the ground with Ino standing above him. Where had he come from? Both shared a quick look of disbelief before they launched into the questions.

"What happened?" Shikamaru questioned, walking over to the blonde girl with wide eyes.

"Is he still alive?" Shino asked, for once sounding worried and not completely calm. If only by a little bit.

Ino stood there, shocked that she had not only stabbed their teacher, but apparently poisoned him as well. Could nothing ever be easy?

"He appeared right _behind_ me. I didn't know it was him. Oh my God! What do we do? I'm too young to die!" Ino cried, looking back and forth between the other two.

Shikamaru raised his hands in an almost placating gesture. "It will be alright. Do you have the antidote on you?"

Upon her uttered answer of no, Shino responded; "Go home and get the antidote then. We really don't need to be implicated in the murder of a Jōnin."

Ino quickly escaped through the window and left the boys to watch over their sensei.

She _really_ hoped she got back with the antidote in time. She didn't want to get punished for something she had had no control over! It had all been the Jōnin's fault. Without a doubt.

* * *

 **Yamanaka Compound**

The blonde haired kunoichi slammed into the door to her home, almost barreling straight through it. Not bothering with taking her shoes off, she ran through the entryway of her house and into the kitchen area where the antidotes were kept.

She slid into the kitchen, failing to notice that her father had company with him, then launched herself into a one-sided conversation with the man.

"Dad do you have the antidote for wolfsbane? I kind of poisoned my teacher a few minutes ago- It was his fault really. He shouldn't have snuck up on me like that. What was he thinking asking kids to go break into the Records room like that? Who does that? But he got poisoned and I really don't feel like being implicated in a murder tonight. Oh hey here's the antidote. I'll see you in a few hours!"

Still oblivious to the company, she ran back out of her house. Both Inoichi and Yukina watched the girl, one amused and the other mortified.

"So you taught your daughter how to poison people?"

Inoichi couldn't help but flush at the question.

* * *

 **Academy Grounds**

Shino had to jump back from the open window when a hysterical blonde jumped through it. "Here's the antidote!" She announced breathlessly, winded from all the running she had been forced into.

Without much hesitation, Shikamaru lifted up their sensei's head while Ino poured the antidote into his mouth. "How long until we know if the antidote has worked?" Shino asked the girl as he stepped towards the three on the floor.

"We should know in the next 10 minutes if it's worked or not." She answered back, really hoping the antidote had worked.

The next ten minutes passed by slowly for the three students.

While Ino had been searching for the antidote, Shikamaru had thought of every viable option they had. These included running away, faking their own deaths, and becoming missing nin. Though he wasn't sure his father would approve of either of the last two. Or Ino's father. And that was one man Shikamaru did not want to piss off.

All three genin stood around in tense silence, worried and fearful of their new teacher dying. And as soon as Genma let out a groan, the trio let out a sigh of relief. They wouldn't have to become missing nin after all.

"What the fuck did you poison me with?" Genma questioned gruffly as the pain in his limbs began to recede, all the while he struggled to sit himself up on the floor.

Blinking, he noted that all three of his little mongrels stood around him in a loose circle. And they all seemed rather relaxed and relieved.

Laughing nervously, Ino informed the man and her teammates, "Wolfsbane. It's primarily used for hunting. In cases of poisoning the person can begin to feel pain in their limbs and abdomen. It takes anywhere from two to six hours to kill a person."

'I pity anyone who crosses that girl;' Genma thought warily. With a groan, he finally managed to sit up. Even through the pain still in his body and stiffness of his limbs, Genma had to smile when Shino dropped the red folder that had been their target in his lap.

"Congratulations you have passed the test, which means you all are mine to tort- I mean... _train_ for the next few years." He smirked at the way all three groaned, then decided to give his assessment, "Girly good use on the speed to get in grab the file and get out. Also don't ever poison me again. It's not nice." He warned, then turned to the bug nin, "Sunglasses, good job with using the cicadas as a screen. Pineapple head, nice job on setting the trap. Now let's all go home and get a good night's sleep. Tomorrow starts training, 12 pm at training ground 2." He teleported away before the cries of how unfair he was being could be heard.

* * *

 **Aburame Compound**

After the tiring day, Shino padded into his kitchen to grab a glass of water before he went to bed. When he got there, he found Shibi already waiting there for him.

"So how did you do?" The older male asked his son, voice somehow maintaining its' monotonous tone even with the clear curiosity peeking through.

"Our test was to break into the Records room under the Hokage tower." Shino informed his father as he grabbed a cup to fill with water. "We managed to trap some assigned guards, retrieved the file, and escaped." And as he served himself his water, he remembered the most exciting and worrying part of the night. "Once in the meeting room, Ino poisoned our sensei. Then we were told we had passed and we are to meet with sensei tomorrow for training."

Normally, Shino was not a mischievous boy. But he knew that hearing about the poisoning would surely catch his father off guard. Especially if it was mentioned so casually.

"Son... Did I hear correctly?"

Internally, Shino smirked at the confusion that coated his father's words. The man barely ever showed any emotion. And it was amusing to actually hear some.

"What do you mean, father?" The boy turned around, keeping his voice innocent and devoid of signs of amusement.

Shibi Aburame crossed his arms over his broad chest and questioned, "Ino poisoned your sensei? Who?"

A Yamanaka using poison rather than her clan's own mind techniques? Shino could understand why his father was intrigued.

"It was an accident." Shino explained, receiving a small nod of understanding from his father. "Apparently when she went to grab one of her senbon, she grabbed one that was treated with wolfsbane." Shino answered with a shrug of his shoulders. "Genma Shiranui is our sensei." He added offhandedly.

"Hmm... He worked as one of the Hokage's bodyguards for a long time." Shibi murmured softly, but said nothing more.

Even though the man knew more about Genma, he wasn't about to tell his son. Not with the questions that _him_ being assigned as a Jōnin teacher brought up.

"Interesting." Shino hummed, then finished his water and began to walk to his room, "I am going to bed now father. Good night."

Behind his own sunglasses, Shibi followed his son's form until the boy ducked out of the kitchen. And once the boy was on his way up the stairs of their home, Shibi allowed himself to think and wonder.

He would have to speak with Inoichi and Shikaku eventually... The fact that Ino-Shika-Cho wasn't being repeated this year was odd enough. But that Shino had replaced the Akimichi's son and that Genma had been deemed the sensei... This was most odd.

* * *

 **Nara Compound**

Shikaku was waiting in the living room when Shikamaru returned home.

"So who are you on a team with? How did you do on the test?"

He heard a groan of annoyance from the boy after he had spoken up, which made the man chuckle at his son's theatrics.

"I'm on a team with Ino and Shino. Our sensei is Genma Shiranui. We passed, even after Ino accidentally poisoned him." Shikamaru replied reluctantly, tired and just desperate for some sleep.

The elder Nara let out a laugh at the thought of Inoichi's princess poisoning someone, especially the sensei of the group. "So they've got you with Inoichi's daughter and Shibi's son... I thought they would have kept the Ino-Shika-Cho formation for this year." Shikaku muttered, thinking on the reasons behind the Hokage's decision.

He realized something was going on in the background and he needed to meet with the Hokage to confirm his suspicions.

"Apparently they wanted a new infiltration team this year. I guess that because we are the top students in the class, they figured we would work well enough together. But I'm going to bed, we have training in a few hours." Shikamaru waved to his dad as he went back towards his room.

Shikaku waved back at his son as his mind worked. And once Shikamaru was gone, the man noted that there must have been something going on in the background. But, to be sure, he would have to meet with Hokage himself... But... Maybe it would be wise to speak with Inoichi and Shibi before. They would undoubtedly have pieces to offer for this puzzle.

Besides, it'd be nice to meet up with Inoichi again.

* * *

 **Yamanaka Compound**

Inoichi was waiting by the front door for his daughter. After her impromptu speech earlier, he was both worried and intrigued by the occurrences of the day. And he _really_ wanted to know just _how_ his daughter had almost murdered her new sensei.

"Hey princess, how did you do?" He asked his pride and joy once he saw her walking up the path to their home.

"Hey daddy, we passed the test." Ino answered nonchalantly, trying to down play everything that had happened during the night.

Inoichi knew exactly what Ino was trying to play at. And he would have none of it.

"Why don't you start at the beginning and tell me exactly what led to you poisoning your teacher." Inoichi smirked softly as his daughter glared at him, but she soon began to explain everything.

"Well I'm on a team with Shikamaru and Shino; and our sensei is Genma Shiranui." She proceeded to give him a play by play of her evening as they made their way back into the living room.

"Alright baby, next time make sure you know who you are poisoning. And always keep the antidote to the poison on you." Inoichi was impressed to know that the boys had both thought fast and maintained their cool. But, then again, Aburames' and Naras' tended to keep a cooler head than most.

He kissed her on the forehead when she said goodnight. The elder Yamanaka figured he could talk to her later about him dating Yukina later on, once the excitement of becoming a genin had died down. He wanted to make sure that she was truly okay with it.

But, before all that, he needed to sit down with Shikaku and Shibi to find out what in the hell the Hokage had been thinking.

* * *

 **Training Grounds 2**

Genma was sitting on a tree branch when the trio meandered onto the training grounds. Oh, he knew this would be a _fun_ exercise. Once the kids had gotten close enough, the senbon enthusiast jumped down and landed in front of the little mongrels.

"Alright kiddies, today's lesson is hiding." He informed them, then began to explain why they would be doing this because the little brats would undoubtedly question him. "Everyone thinks that front-line teams go out first, but that's not true. It's the infiltration teams that go first. They are the ones that are used to gather information and recommend the action that the village takes. Occasionally the infiltration team is found out before the mission ends and they have to run and hide from the enemy until backup shows."

He allowed a few seconds to pass in silence, then he told them just what they would be doing.

"So we are going to play a game of tactical hide and seek. You will hide from me and if you can keep hidden for the next 30 minutes, you pass. Game ends when you all remain successfully hidden for the 30 minutes. We will restart the game if I catch all of you before the 30 minutes is up. Now run along, I promise no peeking." Genma smirked as they all darted into the forest behind him without further prompting.

"Oh, by the way," He whispered softly, smirk finding its way onto his face, "There are a whole bunch of traps in the forest and you're going to lose horribly..."

"You're terrible."

"I try my best." He replied cheekily as Hana Inuzuka and the Three Haimaru Brothers walked up to him.

"Let's give them a minute to get settled. They deserve a moment of peace before you begin the torture." Hana remarked with a roll of her eyes.

Only _he_ would think it would be fun to harass a group of kids. Although... Maybe it was a matter of perspective. Even though Hana couldn't understand why this might be so fun.

A few minutes later, Hana let out a sharp whistle that told the nin dogs to go after the children. As the dogs took to the ground, the adults took to the tree branches. Within seconds the dogs had locked on to the different places where the kids were hiding.

Upon reaching a flustered Shikamaru, Genma couldn't help but sigh and shake his head.

Geez, it was like they weren't even trying!

*Six Hours Later*

The sound of a smoke bomb going off followed by a female scream could be heard throughout the training grounds. "THIS IS UNFAIR!" An enraged Ino screamed at no one in particular.

Shikamaru was trapped in a tree a few feet from her by the dogs and Shino was directly under her, buried up to this neck.

Genma and Hana laughed from their positions above the kids and dropped down. The senbon user decided now was a good time for a lesson.

"Guess what buttercup, we are _shinobi_. _Nothing_ will be fair from now on. When you're out in the field, don't expect to have all the information... _In fact_ , it's better for you to assume that you _don't_ know anything. Also assume that everything a person says to you is a lie." Genma spoke to the group, then blinked and pointed out, "Except your teammates. You need to trust those in the field with you."

A whistle from Hana brought the nin dogs back to her side. They were panting but seemed to be happy, most probably content with having chased down a bunch of kids for the afternoon. Turning towards Genma, she smiled "Hey I've got to go. I need to feed the dogs and help with dinner for the family." The Inuzuka explained, then waved at the kids she had hunted down and finally left with her pleased dogs.

"Alright minions, let's call it a night." Genma walked over to where Shino was stuck and grabbed the back of his collar to haul him out of the ground. Shino quickly moved once he realized that Genma was going to cut Ino down. The senbon enthusiast then walked over to where the post that tied off the net and cut the rope. Ino landed sprawled out on the ground gracelessly. Then a hand was unceremoniously thrust into her face, which she took with a huff. The girl was then pulled onto her feet, but, instead of thanking the man that had pulled her up, Ino merely glared at him.

It was eerily quiet as they all made their way out of the training ground.

"Tomorrow my little monsters at 9 am." Genma announced with a wave of his hand as he left the three standing alone. The newer generation of shinobi shared a look of mutual horror at the thought of training with the clearly deranged man tomorrow.

If they didn't know better, they would have thought he was trying to kill them.

Ino gave a small half smile to the boys, while Shikamaru gave a two-fingered salute and Shino just nodded his head at the two as they mutually split apart to walk in the various directions of their homes.

* * *

 **Aburame Compound**

Once the bug nin was home, he immediately sought out his adoptive brother. He found the older male sitting on the back porch looking out at the sky as the myriad of colors signaled it was sunset. Sitting next him, Shino asked; "How hard was it for you when you started out in Root?"

Root was a subset of the Anbu that had been run by a cold and cruel man, Danzō Shimura. The man however died when he made the mistake of trying to wipe out the Uchiha clan using their own prodigy, the older brother of Sasuke, Shino's fellow recently graduated classmate. Once he had died, all the evidence against him turned up. The experimentation on children, manipulation of high ranking officials...Every disgusting and horrifying piece of evidence. Torune had been a part of Root for a year before it was disbanded. In his time there, he had been partnered with Fū Yamanaka. Currently, they were still partners, but now in regular Anbu. They had passed their psych evaluations.

"It was hard, I had to go from having a family to no one. It was a rough adjustment, but they partnered me up with Fū and he became like family to me. What happened today?" Torune was curious as to how his adoptive brother got along with the younger female cousin of his counterpart.

Swallowing, Shino answered softly, "I swear that man was trying to kill us." Then he regained his composure and looked at the other male. "We played "tactical hide and seek". Which really meant he and his friend, Hana Inuzuka, along with her ninken, beat us up for six hours." The boys crossed his arms over his chest with a huff, attempting to keep his anger from making him shout.

"Did you work together as a team?" The look the younger ninja's face told him all he needed to know. "The entire premise behind the tactical hide and seek game is to get you working like a team. Cover each other's tracks. Throw off whoever is chasing you by working together." He explained, slightly amused that his younger brother hadn't thought of that.

And Shino was supposed to be the smart one.

* * *

 **Yamanaka Compound**

Fū was in the kitchen when Ino arrived home. He had been making some tea for himself to calm down a bit before going to sleep. But, when he heard his cousin enter the home and stomp her way into the kitchen, he decided to begin to make some for her too. And when he noticed the frazzled appearance of his cousin, he decided not to say anything to the temperamental girl. He did however, hand her a cup of the tea he had made and waited.

Ino was, fortunately, rather predictable.

"Today sucked. I seriously want to know where they found this guy at. Like, did he crawl out of hell or something? We had to play tactical hide and seek, because you know, infiltration teams have to know how to hide until back up can get there or whatever... But all he did was beat the crap out of us and trap us! We didn't even stand a chance against him." Ino ranted to her cousin.

She felt rather light after she had done so.

"Did you all try working together?" He shouldn't have been surprised when she glared at him. With a sigh, he continued. "The entire point of this game is to work together. Torune and I had to play it when we first got assigned to work together. Try working with your teammates tomorrow instead of playing the lone ninja."

Leaving her to mull over what he had said, he went back to his room for the night.

* * *

 **Nara Compound**

Yoshino knew something was bothering her son, she saw it in the way he had his brow furrowed all through dinner. "Sweetie, come and help me with the dishes." She called out to her son, knowing fully well he would not disappoint her.

As they worked together to do the dishes, she asked him; "What happened today?"

"We had to play a game of tactical hide and seek; and we failed at it for six hours. You know statistically speaking we should have won at least once." Shikamaru told his mother, ego still bruised from the earlier perceived failure.

Yoshino bit down her laugh, and smiled at her son as she told him, "Tactical hide and seek is meant as a group training exercise. You were supposed to work together as a team to help each other. You go out with teams so you increase your chance of survival, so you need to know how to work seamlessly together."

Shikamaru realized that his mother was right. Of course it had been another test for them. This time to see if they would work together without actually being told so, and of course they hadn't. The thought hadn't even crossed into his mind. Tomorrow they would do _much_ better.

* * *

 **Training Ground 2**

Genma smirked as he walked up to the training grounds, the kiddos were already there. Stopping in front of the group, he noticed a look of determination on all of them and hoped they had learned the lesson he was trying to teach to them last night.

"Sensei, can you teach us how to make traps like the ones you were using yesterday?" Ino asked as she looked at him expectantly.

"Yeah, yeah kiddos. Let's go through trap making: Genma style." He said with a laugh. Oh this would be a fun team.

The next few hours had the students learning a multitude of traps and how to set them off in conjunction with other traps. There was the log trap, which was when they tied a rope to a giant log and sent that down and as soon as the person avoided the log, they got caught in ninja wire. Then there were the fake traps to hide the real traps right beside them; no one ever expected that one.

"Alright kiddos, this is the last one I'm gonna teach you about today. It's the one I was using last night that kept tricking blondie." Genma said as he moved around to show them the trap. "First thing you is set up a smoke bomb with a small explosive tag. So when they trip the trap it goes boom, and they think it's a big explosion. Usually they move right onto the net and the explosions cuts through the wire keeping the net on the ground. Then up they go."

As the four stood on the net, Shino asked him; "So if the explosion doesn't cut the wire then what do you do?"

"Well you should be in position above them, so if that happens then you can throw a kunai or senbon at it and cut the wire." Genma answered, wondering why it suddenly felt as though they were being watched.

Just as he spotted two porcelain masks above them, a kunai was thrown and the wire was cut.

The trap worked just as well today as it did last night, and suddenly Team 3 and their sensei were caught up in the net. Genma glared in the direction as to where the two porcelain masks had showed up seconds ago. _Of course_ those two couldn't take a joke.

Ino looked up at him as she tried to move from where she was stuck between him and Shino and asked, "Sensei you are getting us down from here right?"

Laughter broke out from the team and could be heard all through the training field.

* * *

Please Read and Review!

Next Chapter: The First Mission

"So kiddos here's your first real mission. We have the fun of traveling to the town of Miura in Fire Country to gather evidence against a local merchant there." Genma told the team as he tossed files to each of them.

"Sensei, my family knows this man." Ino said looking at the picture of a familiar man.

It was hard to _not_ remember him. There was a picture of him with her father sitting proudly in their living room.


	3. The First Mission

Author's Note: Thank you to all who have reviewed, followed my story, or favorited my story. I also want to thank Varmint because you are the best! I don't own Naruto or really anything but the plotline of this story.

Also, if you don't like my story; don't read it. If you don't like a part of my story; let me know. But do not flame my story; and do not tell me to go kill myself.

'…' Thought

"…" Speaking

 _Mind transfer/reading_

 **Location**

* * *

 **Training Grounds**

It was a beautiful day in Konoha as Team 3 met up on their training field. The birds were out, the sun was bright, and all seemed peaceful.

It was a beautiful day for the kind of hard work that would end up with at least three genin annoyed and dead tired.

Genma couldn't wait to begin.

"Alright little hell spawns, I want to see all of your clan techniques. Mister-coat-in-the-middle-of-summer you're up first." Genma jibed slightly, but soon a grin found its way to his face.

He was happy that he could now force the little spawns to showcase their clan techniques. He almost felt giddy about it.

It took him a good ounce of control to keep himself from cackling wildly when he began to think of all the ways he could combines all the signature clan moves with one another.

* * *

 **Yakiniku Q**

The leaders of the Nara, Yamanaka, and Aburame clans all sat around a small table in the back of a small and barely inhabited restaurant. They had finally found the time to meet and brainstorm as to why their children had been placed on a team together.

"So Inoichi..." Shibi began, his voice monotonous and hiding rather well the amusement in its depths, "You taught Ino how to poison someone?"

Shikaku let out a loud bark of laughter at the serious man's question. There wouldn't be a time when Ino poisoning her sensei wouldn't be hilarious.

"To be fair, he did sneak up behind her." Inoichi defended immediately, " _And_ that was after she told him she was good with poisons. So really it was all _his_ fault." The blonde finished with a cross of his arms, glaring slightly at the two men before him.

"Alright, alright. Let's get down to business." Shikaku interjected softly, holding his hands up in a placating gesture to get the attention of the other two. "Shikamaru said that they are the new infiltration either of you have any possible reason as to why they would use Shiranui as their sensei, though?"

"Well, I have heard he is as perfect as it gets at infiltrating. He can get in and out without anyone remembering what he looks like..." Inoichi informed his fellow parents, knowing this because of various conversations he'd had in the Intelligence Division. After a second, though, he hummed slightly, "Though it is odd that it's the personal bodyguard of the Hokage, do you not agree?"

"Yes... It is very odd. And this worries me. I would like to know just what the Hokage is planning with my son." The Aburame informed the men, voice laced with expertly contained anger and worry.

"Well then..." Shikaku breathed out for a moment in thought, then waved his hand dismissively, "The only way to find out what the Hokage is thinking is to have him tell us." His mind was already racing to put pieces of the puzzle together, although he was aware that he was missing a few. But he knew that that missing piece would be found with the Hokage himself.

"Then we have decided." Inoichi spoke up with a glance at his old teammate, "We shall ask for audience with the Hokage."

Shibi nodded tersely and quietly at the man's final words, all the while Shikaku merely closed his eyes and grunted softly. Inoichi knew the Hokage was a busy man. But seeing how three important clan heads of the village were asking to meet with him, he'd have to give them the time of day.

* * *

 **Mission Assignment Desk (One Month Later)**

Genma was utterly bored and more than a little annoyed... He'd been here for _hours_. He had been summoned to be assigned a mission early in the morning and had yet to be given it. And, quite frankly, he was itching to get back to his little chickadees so he could start them on some new training exercises. He tapped his foot against the ground in annoyance as he thought about all the explosions that they would run across in the exercise... He was sure they were going to _love_ what he had prepared for them.

…Well he definitely would.

Though come to think of it, they didn't seem to get fazed by many things he did anymore now that he thought about it... Huh... He would have to try harder to get them to let loose all those amazing screams of horror at what he brought to the table.

"Shiranui." The Third Hokage called out, bringing Genma out of his musings.

The senbon user stepped forward and stood at attention before the Hokage, prompting the older man to begin to explain the mission.

"You and your team are to go to the town of Miura in Fire Country. There have been reports of a local merchant involved in a child smuggling ring. The Fire Daimyō wants evidence to either support this allegation or against it. You and your team are to leave tomorrow as early as you can."

Genma took the folder with his eyes narrowed, then began to look over the papers as a slight frown pulled at his mouth. "This is a C bordering on B-Rank, Lord Hokage."

"I am aware."

The answer caused the senbon enthusiast to chance a glance at the Hokage, as if to make sure he wasn't just trying to pull Genma's leg. But seeing how the man was as serious as ever, the jōnin knew that this mission was real.

His team had just been given their first C-Rank.

He wasn't completely sure how to feel about it.

With a slight nod, Genma bowed to the man and headed out to meet with his team.

Once he was gone, Hiruzen let out a sigh of relief. He was happy his former bodyguard hadn't pitched a fit about the assignment.

"These kids will need to get their feet wet eventually, Genma." The man thought aloud, closing his eyes as he allowed himself a small moment of rest.

As he rejoiced in the calm, he began to think about the three children he had assigned to Genma. They were all intelligent and more than capable of protecting themselves. They were ready for a mission.

Unfortunately, his small moment of rest was broken when he realized he was going to have a meeting with the fathers of those very children later today.

Shibi Aburame wasn't all that bad. But Hiruzen would be lying if he didn't feel at least a little bit freaked out with the man's commanding aura.

Shikaku was mostly harmless... As long as something didn't interest him. But seeing how he had personally asked for this audience with him, Hiruzen knew that he couldn't count on the man's usual disinterest in these matters.

And Inoichi... He'd most probably be the most passionate of the three. It was his little girl after all.

... Couldn't someone choose to _try_ and invade Konoha right about now? He was much more prepared to deal with something like that than with three worried and overprotective parents.

* * *

 **Training Grounds**

Genma arrived at the training grounds and found all of the kids lounging at what had been dubbed 'The meeting spot'. This was really just a giant tree right before the forest, but it had become the chosen spot for meeting up. He could make out the purple outfit belonging to the sole female ninja on a low branch where she sat, while the Nara and Aburame sat on the ground beneath her, playing a game of shogi.

A quick whistle from him immediately caught their attention. Without any hesitation, the three scrambled to pick up the board and head over to him at their own pace. And this meant that Ino jumped over to Genma with wide and questioning eyes, followed by Shino strolling calmly behind her, all the while Shikamaru lagged behind with his eyes closed and hands shoved into his pockets. Once they were all in front of him, he tossed them each a file and gave them a minute to read over the mission before he explained it aloud.

"So kiddos, here's your first real mission. We have the fun of traveling to the town of Miura in Fire Country to gather evidence against a local merchant there." Genma told the group as he crossed his arms over his chest, fully prepared to continue speaking when Ino cut him off.

"Uh sensei, my family knows this man." Ino piped up while looking at a picture of the familiar man.

It was hard _not_ to remember him. After all there was a picture of him and her father sitting proudly in their living room.

She fell into silence after speaking up, thinking hard about the man. It just couldn't be. This couldn't be the merchant they were supposed to find. There was no way her father would speak highly of someone that could possibly be evil!

Shikamaru clearing his throat caused Ino to break out of her inner monologue and look at the males around her.

Seeing the sharp looks her team was giving her, she realized they wanted an explanation. And so she gave them one.

"During the 3rd Shinobi War, there was a raiding party that took to attacking that town night after night, for about a week straight. A few of my fellow clans' men went to help to stop the attacks. They were injured in the fighting, so the man, Araki Daichi offered to let them stay in his home until they had healed."

She gave them a moment to absorb the information before she continued the story her father had told her many times with a bright twinkle in his eyes, "The town holds a small celebration on the anniversary of the fight. If I'm not mistaken, the party will be the day after tomorrow."

Genma nodded thoughtfully as the wheels in his mind began to turn. If what Ino was telling them was true, then they would have a possible in with the town that wouldn't seem suspicious. If the Yamanaka really were so important to the town, then... Although... he wasn't sure if he wanted to use the girl in such a way just yet. They _were_ just beginning on missions. They hadn't even had experience with a _simple_ infiltration yet.

Not like there was such a thing as a _simple_ mission when it came to shinobi like them, but... With a shake of his head, Genma reminded himself he needed to send his kids off to pack so they were prepared for their mission.

"Alright my half-pints," The man clapped his hands together before pointing over in the direction of the village, "Go home and get a bag packed. We'll be out for at least 3 days, so plan for 4. We leave tomorrow morning at 8 am." He commanded, then finished with a bright smile, "Off you go."

With this he shooed them away with his hands, successfully dismissing the clan heirs.

Once they were all gone, the man sighed and shook his head, bringing his right hand up to pinch at the bridge of his nose. Ino clearly cared for the merchant they were to be investigating. And seeing how the man had been so kind to her clan, she would not want to even think of the possibility of him being the person committing these heinous crimes.

He could feel a headache coming on as he tried to think of ways to get past this new hiccup.

* * *

 **Yamanaka Compound**

Ino came home while Inoichi was supposed to be at the Intelligence Division and Fū was working a shift with his Anbu team. When she walked into the living room, the young girl took a look at the photo of her father and Daichi Araki. She remembered asking her father about the man when she was younger. She had always heard good things about him and couldn't help but wonder who would accuse him of such a horrendous act. From what she had heard, he was too kind to even hurt a fly. Much less children.

Leaving the living room with a heavy sigh, she padded up the stairs and into her bedroom. The blonde went over to her vanity and grabbed her last birthday present from Fū, a set of jewel encrusted senbon. For a minute or so, she looked them over, entertaining the thought of bringing them with her. But for that, she'd want them to be ready for action...If she treated them now, they'd be dry in the morning and ready for use.

With a decisive nod, she set off to the greenhouse with the senbon in hand.

As she walked into the backroom where all of the harvested poisons were stored, the girl couldn't help but continue thinking about Daichi Araki. Her father considered him a great ally. And she knew it would hurt him immensely to find out he was capable of such evil.

Shaking her head to get rid of those thoughts, the girl placed the weapons on the table. She couldn't focus on that now. She had to prepare for the mission now.

With her eyes narrowed in determination, she walked over the shelves and began skimming through the labels of the harvested poisons.

The blue eyed girl decided upon a jar with the words "Cicuta Maculata" on it. This poison came from the plant also known as Water Hemlock; with the poison in its roots, it was considered one of the most violently toxic plants. Symptoms of poisoning included painful convulsions, abdominal cramps, nausea and death. Though anyone unfortunate enough to survive this poison often ended suffering from amnesia and lasting tremors.

She placed the jar on the table, and grabbed a paint brush. Taking her kunai in one hand, she dipped the brush into the poison and began applying it to the blade. Following the same methodical procedure, she coated all of her kunais, shurikens, and senbons. Once the kunoichi was done, she placed the jar of Cicuta Maculata back into its spot, and took the brush over to the sink. Carefully, she washed the brush off before placing it in a jar of alcohol to kill the rest of poison and germs.

Leaving her weapons on the table to finish drying, the girl made her way back into the house to begin packing for the journey.

*-()-*

Inoichi and Fū sat at the dinner table listening to Ino regale them with tales of her day. "And then we got dismissed to come home and pack. I have my weapons out in the greenhouse right now. The poison should have finished drying by now, and yes dad I did make sure to pack the antidote." She answered her father's unasked question with a broad smile, looking at him with bright eyes.

"That's good princess." Her father chuckled with a slight shake of his head, then looked at them both curiously. "Say I have a question for the two of you." The leader of the Yamanaka said, and, once both were turned towards him, he continued; "How do you feel about me dating?"

"Is it that nice lady from the store?" Ino asked hopeful her dad had finally decided to move on.

"What's her name?" Fū asked, only ever having heard her called the "Nice lady from the store".

"Yes and her name is Yukina." Inoichi answered both questions with a smile. They were taking it better than he thought they would. Then again, Ino had been insistent about him dating again.

"We are happy for you daddy. We only want what's best for you." Ino spoke up for both her cousin and herself.

"Does that include when you barged in here while she and I were having dinner, and proceeded to tell the both of us about how you poisoned your sensei?"

Ino flushed at that, she really hadn't known that the older woman was in the kitchen. She definitely would have been a lot more tactful about her presence, but she was in a rush and worried out of her mind at the time.

"Well how about when Ino gets home from her first mission, we go out for dinner. And you invite Yukina, so we can all formally meet." Fū suggested, smirking at thought of his cousin poisoning her teacher. Oh he was _never_ going to let her live that down.

"Sounds good to me." Ino quickly agreed, hoping her father would also agree. At the nod of his head, Ino let out a whoop and punched the air. She was excited to finally have a conversation with Yukina.

As the conversation continued between the younger generation of Yamanakas, Inoichi's thoughts turned dark. 'Daichi what the hell did you do?' The man wondered. He had never sensed any sort of ill will from the man. Surely it had to be a mistake... There was no way these allegations were true. They just _couldn't_ be.

* * *

 **Shushuya**

"And these two actually fell for it!" Genma exclaimed as he fell into a round of cackles, all the while motioning towards Kakashi and Tenzō.

He still thought it was hilarious that his little hellions had tricked them so easily. Hell, even Shino and Shikamaru admitted that they had not thought such a 'rudimentary'- as described by Shady himself- would have worked against two more than capable jōnin.

"Well at least we weren't the ones to get poisoned by our own team." Kakashi grouched back softly, eye still firmly planted on the book he had been reading all night.

Even though he was trying to play off Genma's amusement, the older man could tell it irked the younger to have been taken out by three genin.

Genma just laughed about the poisoning. He knew he had been at fault for that one. The rest of the jōnin and chūnin around the table joined in with his laughter, more than amused with the idea of one of Genma's brats actually poisoning him.

Once their laughter had died down, Kurenai leaned forward on the table with a soft smirk, "So... Now that you've had your team for a month, who's your favorite?" She questioned curiously, red eyes focused on the senbon enthusiast.

"I don't have a favorite." Genma answered back as he blinked, perplexed as to why he would have a favorite in the first place.

"Oh come on man, we all have favorites." Asuma breathed out around the ever present cigarette, which made Genma turn to him with a questioning look on his face. The man, after noticing his confusion, elaborated, "Kurenai's favorite is the Hyūga girl. Mine is the Inuzuka boy." He assured, then smirked, "So who is yours?"

Truth be told, Genma was surprised to be hearing this. Sure, he had never wanted to be a teacher... But he found it slightly odd and just a bit selfish to be picking favorites on a team. Weren't they supposed to be there for all of their students? To guide and to teach? Not to just find amusement in watching the kids blunder around?

... Nah... Neither Asuma nor Kurenai were malicious enough to leave two kids behind just to get their supposed favorite ahead. Maybe they had one they liked a bit more... But he was sure they'd never let preference blind them.

"No, I seriously don't have a favorite." Genma shook his head, then couldn't help but smirk, trying to brighten his mood once more, "I didn't even want this team!" He exclaimed, only to receive snorts and eye rolls from the various people around the table.

Clearly, they didn't believe him... But at least they were going to drop it.

A few minutes of amused and content silence passed between the group of shinobi and Genma couldn't help but begin to think again on the whole 'favorite' issue. It's not like he could pick a minion he liked more than another. They were all great in their own individuals' strengths. And when those were combined... Well... He was kind of starting to like calling them 'his' minions.

Too bad his content musings were interrupted by a loud, familiar, and very much unwelcome female voice.

"Hey! Genma! Sweet Lips! Buddy Boy! Love of my life!"

With a groan, Genma allowed his head to fall onto the table in a pitiful attempt to hide. He really didn't want to deal with Anko right now.

Oh... He could just see the smirk the woman would be wearing... Really, why was he even trying? No one could hide from her when she put her mind to it.

Sidling up to the booth, the purple haired woman slid in until her hip was pressed to Genma's. "So what's this I hear about you taking on a new genin team?" She asked her compatriot, curious as to how he got a team in the first place.

"Well you weren't here." Genma told the woman, knowing he'd instantly spark her interest.

"Elaborate on that one." She told the man as she stole his drink. It was only fair in her mind. In Genma's... Not so much.

"They wanted an infiltration team, and since you were out on a mission, they gave it to me." Genma explained, as he rolled the senbon in his mouth.

"So lemme get this straight, that team would have been mine had I not been on a mission?" She asked sharply, glaring at the brunet.

Smiling back at her, "Yep. The Hokage said 'You're the best at infiltration other than Anko, and she's away right now.' So you would have had it, if you had been in Konoha at the time."

The T&I specialist disappeared into a cloud of smoke, and everyone else at the table looked at Genma with varying levels of astonishment.

"You are fucking evil." Asuma shook his head with gravity, all the while he crossed his arms over his broad chest.

Not even he would have sent Anko after his father like that.

Genma just shrugged his shoulders. The third Hokage was _supposed_ to be the best ninja in Konoha, so surely he could deal with her. If not... Well the senbon user was leaving in the morning anyway.

* * *

 **Front Gate**

Genma was already waiting at the front gate when his little munchkins showed up. He really wanted to get this show on the road, especially since he had sent Anko after the Hokage like that. The brunette did not need to be here any longer than necessary if he wanted to steer clear from any possible repercussions.

"Blondie, send this Araki guy a message. Let him know that you are travelling in his direction and ask if he can put you up for the night." Genma ordered the girl, still uneasy about using her in such a way.

"I already did sensei. He believes I am travelling with two friends and an escort since my father wasn't coming with me." Ino informed the team.

She didn't believe the accusations against the man. Hopefully this mission would set the record straight; someone shouldn't have their life ruined because someone else accused them of a heinous crime.

Nodding his head at her, Genma knew that, sooner or later, he would have to break them all of the habit of looking at the world with rose-tinted glasses. "Alright then my little squishies, let's go. We'll reach the town by tonight."

They all bounded into the trees and left the village. Genma was happy that they didn't have to make the journey on foot, and that his hobbits had picked up the tree branch jumping skills pretty fast…. Well after he stopped scaring and throwing random things at them.

Ah... Those had been the good days... Especially whenever Shikamaru tried to hide from Genma's expert aim and only ended up being knocked onto the cold and unrepentant ground, followed by the cackles of his teacher.

* * *

 **Miura**

Hours later, the team dropped down from the trees 50 feet away from the entrance to the town. Genma had set an _almost_ punishing pace for the team. The senbon enthusiast did have to give the spawns credit, they didn't complain. Though it might have been because he had threatened them with a day of training with his old teammate; Might Guy.

They had learned on the tenth day of training just what a day with his old teammate could be like. Though Genma had to admit, even _he_ had shuddered when Guy had presented _his_ munchkins with green spandex monstrosities at the end of the day. His mongrels in Might Guy clothes... That was a mental image he had never needed.

Shino could feel his bugs buzzing in anticipation, and he couldn't blame them. He wondered what infiltration missions were like and how well he would be at them.

While Shikamaru had an almost bored look on his face, effectively making it seem as if he didn't care much, his brain was racing with the hundreds of scenarios of success and failure it created.

And Ino was determined to set the record straight; there was no way in hell that Daichi Araki could have done this! Her family was the best in the business at what they did; there was no way they could have missed such a thing!… Right?

"Sensei, there is Daichi Araki." Ino spoke up, eyes ahead on the figure standing in the middle of the road. He was flanked by a person on either side of him. One was a woman, and the other a young boy, no more than 4 years old.

"Okay little minions, remember to play nice. He doesn't know what we are here for, and we don't need to tip him off." Genma told the group; he knew they were smarter than that. But cautioning them couldn't hurt. Especially seeing how this was their first mission.

Once the group was within twenty feet of the welcoming party the older man smiled broadly and greeted them. "Hello, Yamanaka-chan. It is wonderful to see you again, though I do wish your father could have joined you in tomorrow's festivities. Who might your friends be?"

"Hello again Araki-san. My father does send regards; he wishes he could have been here. My friends are Nara, Shikamaru and Aburame, Shino. This is our escort; Shiranui, Genma." Ino answered with a bright smile of her own, all the while pointing at each male she introduced.

"It is a pleasure meeting all of you; this is my wife, Karou, and my son Takao." Daichi motioned to either person with a kind demeanor, then said, "We already have rooms ready for each of you. If you would please follow us; we will escort you to our home so you can freshen up and then join our family for dinner." His demeanor remained cheerful, keeping his body language open and inviting.

Once the group had reached the home, Karou had led the team to their rooms. Ino had her own room, while the boys and Genma shared a room across the hall. After Team 3 freshened up and changed their clothes, they all met with the family to have dinner.

Conversations flowed smoothly and Daichi even regaled the team with some of the stories of the town. As Ino listened to the stories, she began to feel an irrational anger towards whoever had accused this lovely man of such an atrocity. Then she felt guilt and apprehension; but they weren't her own emotions. They were hanging in the air, stifling to the girl.

Shikamaru noticed Ino's furrowed brow and gently squeezed her hand under the table to get her attention. He raised an eyebrow at her, a silent question: Are you okay? She just smiled back, her answer: We'll talk later. It was their own language, having been developed since their father's introduced them all those years ago to be prepared to be the next Ino-Shika-Cho.

Shino felt out of place as he watched his two teammates having a silent conversation. He understood that they had known each other for the longest time, but he had a feeling that didn't even begin to describe their relationship. Suddenly he was hit with a pang of jealousy, and realized that he wanted that. He wanted to have someone care about him like that and have a silent conversation with him.

Ino could feel the sudden onslaught of jealousy, though she wasn't sure from who. Just as soon as it came, it left, to be buried down again. She had always been called the prodigy of the Yamanaka clan. The child capable of surpassing her own father. The blue eyed girl never understood why everyone seemed to think she would be better than her father, until six months ago. That was when she started being able to pick up on the emotions of others, more specifically the strong ones.

Genma kept his attention divided between the stories being told and his team. He watched as Shikamaru and Ino had their conversation, as jealousy flitted across Shino's face only to disappear again. He needed to teach them to not wear their emotions out in the open like that; it would get them killed.

All of sudden laughter broke out across the table from the story of how Daichi had been chasing Takao around the garden and fell into the pond. Genma did have to give it to the kids, they at least knew when to make the appropriate noises.

*-()-*

Ino quietly slipped into the boys' room after everyone else had went to bed. As soon as she closed the door, Genma made a few hand signs and effectively sound proofed the room.

"Ino what was going on earlier?" Shikamaru inquired, referring to the incident at the table. He knew that everyone else on their team had noticed as well.

"I think it was Araki-san's wife who made the original complaint." She mused to the group, causing them all to wonder why she would think so.

"How'd you come to that conclusion, buttercup?" The senbon enthusiast wondered. It was probably a good thing that he put up the seal on the room.

If anybody heard this...

"I can feel the emotions of others, but only the really strong ones. And when we were having dinner earlier, I could feel guilt and apprehension. Also I noticed her body language was tense all through dinner, so I think the emotions were coming from her." Ino explained her logic.

"First: It's not what you know, it's what you can prove. We need evidence. Second: You all need to go to bed." Genma told them, anticipating the fight.

They didn't disappoint him. The chorus of groans, accompanied all of them trying to talk at once. Thankfully he understood the general gist of what they were saying: They were ninjas. They didn't need sleep. It's not fair. Blah, blah, blah. Which is why he was slightly surprised when he raised his hands and they all shut up.

"Who's the teacher here?"

The glares sent his way all had their own varying degrees of annoyance and irritation.

"But Genma Se-" Ino tried to argue, only to have him shush her.

"What was one of the first things I ever told you kids?" He questioned, looking them all over with a slight frown.

"Never look Anko Sensei in the eye for she will see that as a direct challenge to her dominance."

Quite frankly, he had been expecting the smart ass retort from either Ino or Shikamaru. But apparently those two had already corrupted Shades with their smart mouths.

With a glare in the Aburame's direction, Genma scoffed. "I _did_ say that, but that's besides the point." Then he pointed all three of them, "You are all genin. _I_ am your teacher. You do what I say when I say it and you don't give me any smart ass answers."

"That's so unfair! This is _our_ mission too!" Ino protested immediately, "And I want to gather the evidence to prove that Daichi is innocent!"

She really believed the man was innocent... With a sigh, Genma shook his head. "And you will do that. _Tomorrow_. After you've had a good night of sleep and I've been able to think of the best plan of action."

The girl's face reddened in anger all the while both Shino and Shikamaru bristled at the idea of Genma not allowing them to be part of the plan making, but the man merely rolled his eyes at their theatrics.

"Bed. Now."

Shino and Ino glared back at the man, although Shikamaru breathed out. "This is too troublesome... See you."

At least Genma could always count on the Nara wanting to avoid any troublesome situations. That made wrangling the kids into bed much easier.

"Shikamaru!" Ino seethed after the boy, only to receive a wave as his answer.

"We are capable of finding information without alerting them of our true intentions." Shino told Genma as Shikamaru made his way to the bed, "We can do this, Genma Sensei."

He hadn't expected Shino to put much of a fight. He had always thought the Aburame were a passive and understanding bunch... Maybe he had been wrong...

"Trust us, Genma Sensei!" Ino huffed out, "We can do this!"

Genma looked over both kids for a moment, noticing their determined stances, and shook his head. Without a single word he moved behind Shino and pushed him into his assigned bed, "Stay there unless you want me to knock you out."

Then, once the Aburame remained still, Genma walked over to Ino, studied her annoyed features for a second, then shrugged and jabbed her in the neck, promptly knocking her out.

Shino would listen to the threat. But Ino would scratch and claw him if he tried to move her awake.

"I'll be back in a little while." Genma informed both boys as he unsealed the room and opened the door, then began to make his way in the direction of the girl's room.

Couldn't these kids just listen to reason without arguing for _once_?

*-()-*

Shikamaru was getting impatient. He just wanted to get this party over with, so hopefully they could find evidence and go home. It wasn't helping that his haori was itching. The Nara heir was wearing a traditional kimono in green and black, with his hair back in his signature ponytail. He had always hated getting dressed up and this was no different. It wasn't helping matters that all of the guys were ready to go, they were just waiting on Ino.

Shino looked calm and collected on the outside; dressed in a traditional blue kimono. Though he was just as irritated as the boy next to him. He had never been for crowds, or mingling, or people. They always seemed weirded out by him and the bugs. He supposed the phrase "grin and bear it" would be on his mind a lot tonight. The only saving grace for him was the fact that he was still able to wear his sunglasses.

Genma almost laughed at the two clearly frustrated boys. Thankfully he had managed to get away with wearing his normal Jōnin uniform so he wouldn't have to suffer through wearing those stifling clothes. He could tell just how uncomfortable they were in their traditional kimonos; it was another habit he was going to have to break them out of. They needed to be able to go into any situation and look like they belonged there. Tonight they were going to stick out like sore thumbs.

When the door to Ino's room finally opened, the three males turned to it with a collective exhale. They would _finally_ be leaving!

Shikamaru and Shino had both been prepared to see their female teammate as always. They weren't prepared for what they were greeted by.

The blonde was dressed in a traditional kimono that looked like it was tailor made specifically for her. It was the color of eminence with silver flower design that started at the bottom and spiraled up to her shoulder, and a silver obi to tie it. Her hair was half-up half-down in a bun that was held together by her jewel encrusted senbons.

She looked... Amazing.

"Alright the gang's all here. Let's get this shindig over with!" Genma said with a clap of his hands to knock the boys out of the trance their female teammate had unknowingly just put them in.

*-()-*

Everyone in the town had made it out to the party. The house and backyard were overflowing with guests. Genma was having a hard time keeping track of where his minions were because of the sheer number of people. But he could see that Shino was keeping to himself in a corner and Shikamaru had found a shogi board and was playing against one of the elders of the village even though there was difficulty of spotting them with this large crowd. But this was only because they had barely moved from their spots.

Ino, on the other hand, was being escorted by Daichi and Genma was having a rather tough time of find them. And there was an uncomfortable pit forming in his stomach because of this.

Slipping through the crowds, the brunette jōnin made his way over to Shino and asked, "Have you seen the princess?"

The boy in dark sunglasses nodded his head in the general direction as to where his female teammate had disappeared to.

* * *

In the meantime, Ino was immensely grateful to Fū for showing her how to pretend to pay attention to people. It was an invaluable skill to have at this point in time; as she was listening to one of the village elders talk about their grandchild, with subtle hints as to him being a good match for her.

She felt a hand on the small of her back, as she was excused from the old woman and moved into another group of adults. Smiling, the girl accepted the glass of water given to her from Daichi. He must have noticed her licking her slightly chapped lips and taken some pity on her.

After taking a few sips of water; she bowed to the next set of adults she was introduced to. As she made small talk with them she had to stifle a yawn. Odd, she hadn't been feeling tired a few minutes ago.

Taking a few more sips of water, she tried to wake herself up. It was terribly improper for her to be tired at such a time.

She tried to remain awake. She really did. But then she began to feel dizzy and any thoughts of probably being tired were dashed away with something worse...

Daichi had _drugged_ her.

The blonde haired girl looked at the man in confusion. She didn't want to believe the rumors, but... Why would he do this?

She felt almost as if she was underwater; barely able to hear anything, or see who was in front of her. As she tried to open her mouth to say something, her tongue seemed to rebel against her. She couldn't form a sentence. Not even a word.

"Oh it seems my guest is worn out." Daichi chuckled softly as Ino began to sway, her eyes drooping heavily. "Please excuse us, while I escort her back to her room. I want to make sure she doesn't fall asleep in the hall." Daichi easily explained with a small laugh.

Once the group had dispersed, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, and moved her down the hall that they had been standing next to.

By the time he had gotten to the stairs, she was unconscious. He hefted her up and over his shoulder, then began to make his way up the stairs. A quick walk and a turn, then the man was standing in front of a fake wall panel.

Moving a small cut away portion to the side, the man looked from left to right to make sure no one was around. Then, once he was sure he was safe, he slipped the key into the lock and opened door. Once he was inside, he shut the door to prevent any other entry.

Setting the girl on the ground, he walked over to the cupboard in the room to grab the supplies he would need.

Once he grabbed those; he went to work on tying the girl up. Putting her arms behind her back, he tied up her hands. Then he moved on to tying up her feet; once he was done, he connected her hands and feet with a short piece of rope to make it even harder for her to move. Then he pried her jaw open, to place the middle of the rolled up handkerchief inside her mouth before tying the ends together behind her head.

"You're getting better at doing that." The voice slithered and filled up the room with an ominous presence.

* * *

Genma was starting to sweat. He had been all over the house, through the backyard and had even jumped into the middle of two different large crowds. But he had yet to find the girl. He was on his fourth sweep of the house when one group of men talking had said something that caught his attention.

"Too bad that girl got tired in front of Daichi. I would have loved to taken her back to her room; if you know what I mean." The man leered with his friends.

Making a mental note of who had said something as disrespectful as that, especially towards his little princess, Genma stomped down the murderous rage he felt rise up in him. And once he had managed to do that, he made his way towards where their rooms were. His first priority would be the safety of his team, once he made sure she was safe; he could take care of the other problem.

He almost wretched the door to her room out, and realized with a horror she wasn't there. She wasn't in the house. She hadn't been out in the backyard.

His little blondie had been kidnapped.

 _Fuck._


	4. Crash and Burn

Author's Note: Thank you to all who have reviewed, followed my story, or favorited my story. I also want to thank Varmint because you are the best! I don't own Naruto or really anything but the plotline of this story.

Also, if you don't like my story; don't read it. If you don't like a part of my story; let me know. But do not flame my story; and do not tell me to go kill myself.

'…' Thought

"…" Speaking

 _Mind transfer/reading_

 **Location**

* * *

 **Miura**

Genma felt a bleak sense of dread settle in his gut. He had just lost one of his little minions. And from what he had gathered of the munchkins, they weren't the kind to carelessly wander off. Especially not Ino. She most probably would have announced finding any new clue and forced her team to follow after her in whatever search she deemed necessary.

Spinning quickly on his heel, the man ran back outside to get the other two members of his team. He grabbed Shikamaru first, and pulled the genin behind him with a death grip on his wrist. Once he reached Shino, he grabbed him with his other hand just as tightly.

He moved the group through the crowds and back to the room that Ino had been staying in. "Ino is missing." He told the two boys quickly, not allowing them to even think about whining over being manhandled. His mind was already planning their next move, but that didn't mean he wasn't worried. If anything, it cemented the fact that he was almost terrified for the kid in his mind.

"Troublesome..." Shikamaru sighed, even though Genma could see the concern that began to pull his eyebrows in.

"What shall we do next?" Shino questioned, any concern he may have expressed hidden extremely well because of the layers he wore.

"You're about to learn the next lesson. We _never_ leave a teammate behind…. Or in the hands of a murderous psychopath. Nara, what way would they most likely take to get out of this town?"

Shikamaru thought of all the ways out, and quickly concluded the most likely route. "To the east. Where there is the forest and river."

"Dammit, that's still a large area to cover." Genma growled, his hands clenching into fist at what could possibly happen to the girl.

"I can help with that part. How? I placed female bugs on each of you, in the event of someone being captured. The males can follow her pheromone trail and lead us directly to Ino." Shino explained to the group, leaving Genma somewhat annoyed at the idea of being able to be tracked by _bugs_ , but thankful they were able to chase after the girl that had been taken.

"We leave now."

The three ninjas departed from the house quickly. Once they were outside and pointed in the right direction; Genma bit his finger and flew through a pattern of hand signs. Slamming his hand to the ground, he watched as a raven flew in the direction towards Konoha.

"Back up." He told the boys, answering the unasked question. He would explain it to them in more detail later. But, right now, they needed to find the final member of their team.

Once the team was jumping through the tree to the east, Shino released his kikaichū. Following the direction of the bugs, the three-man cell hoped to make up for whatever time they had unknowingly lost.

-*()*-

Ino could barely discern where she was, or who she was with. Groggily, the young girl opened her eyes. Black spots danced across her vision, and her brain felt as if it was being pierced by a burning knife. Choking back the bile that rose in her throat, the blonde slowly began to put the pieces together of what had happened.

... What _had_ happened?

The Yamanaka strained herself to remember what had happened. Then, when she finally did, she couldn't help the wave of revulsion and panic that struck.

That's right! She had been drugged! And by Daichi, no less!

Feeling the beginnings of a panic attack happening, she viciously shook her head. Now was _not_ the time to freak out. She needed to take stock of her injuries, just like Genma-sensei had taught her.

She could feel her shoulders being pulled back, and her elbows both hyper-extended. The ropes were cutting into her wrists and ankles. And they were so tight she knew she couldn't slip out of them. And of course, _the drug_. It was probably some variation of a sleeping medication, if she had to guess from the symptoms.

Her head was still too heavy to lift, and the black spots were still dancing across her vision. Wait, those weren't black spots; it was...

Her eyes widened in surprise and amazement, a wave of happiness washing over her. It was Shino's kikaichū! The girl knew she needed to act fast if she wanted to give her team a chance to catch up.

In one quick movement, she slammed her right knee into the throat of the guy carrying her. Unfortunately, it resulted in her dislocated left shoulder and the effect was immediate. Without any warning, she suddenly found herself submerged in freezing water. And that, mixed with the pain and the drugs, defeated her will to fight without any problem. The darkness began to surround her and she could do nothing about it.

"Sempai, umm I kind of dropped the girl." The man in the swirly mask whispered, voice tinted with worry. Though the lack of volume was for nothing, for the other man had heard clearly.

"What? Why did you do that?" The leader spoke with a hiss. "Never mind, we are being chased. Three Konoha nin. Let's go."

"Tobi is sorry. Tobi did not mean to drop the girl. The girl hurt Tobi."

-*()*-

"God dammit, one of you go get her!" Genma growled out, immediately damning Ino's impulsivity. Of all the stupid things she could have done, it _had_ to be have been _that_.

Shino immediately leapt into action and dove head first into the river. Swimming as fast as he could, he reached out and caught the bottom of her kimono. Then, using the fabric, he pulled back to bring the girl towards him. Wrapping his arm around her waist, he kicked up and broke through the surface of the water.

The bug nin felt his heart drop when he surfaced and no sound came from Ino. But, after a second, she began to cough up water. And although it wasn't pretty, it was a most welcomed sound.

Grabbing a shuriken with ninja wire attached to it, the Aburame threw it into the trunk of a tree. Then, he wrapped his free hand around the wire and began to pull them to safety.

Once he reached land, Shino set the girl on the ground, quickly producing a kunai to cut the ropes that were binding her. "Ino, can you hear me?" He enquired worriedly as he checked his teammate over for any more injuries, other than the very obvious dislocated shoulder.

"Owww, remind me not to do that again..." the girl retorted groggily, trying to sit up. Although it was in vain. Her body was in too much pain to listen to her.

The sounds of a booming explosion rang out, immediately catching their attention. They weren't fools. Explosions in such a desolate place could only mean one thing. Danger for their team.

Shino cursed under his breath, he weighed the options of either going to help Genma-sensei and Shikamaru, or staying with Ino. However, the tempestuous girl made the decision for the pair.

Gritting her teeth, the blonde spitfire clambered to her feet. "C'mon, we aren't leaving them to die."

Both genin ran as fast as they could through the forest and into a clearing where all the found was complete and utter chaos.

The senbon user was engaged in a two on one fight. A few feet behind him stood Shikamaru in a defensive position, eyebrows narrowed in concentration.

The shadow user let loose two kunai were set loose from the shadow user with clear effort. But these were easily dodged by the enemy.

As Ino and Shino joined ranks with their comrade, the enemy wearing a mask sent a kunai with an explosive tag attached to it right at the children.

Genma realized he needed to act quickly if he wanted to save his team. Spinning around as quickly as he could, the man ran towards his team. And when he reached them, without any hesitation whatsoever,he wrapped his arms around all of them and jumped as the kunai landed in the ground where they had just been.

The explosion slammed Genma into a tree harshly after he had used his body to shield his minions. The four tumbled into a pile at the base of this tree. Then, the three underneath him could feel his blood dripping down onto their heads.

Moving as fast as they could, the kids scrambled out from under their sensei. Without any communication among them, Shikamaru ran off to the right to hide behind a tree, all the while his teammates ran to the left and hid behind their own trees. With a wince and much difficulty, Ino flew her hands through a set of seals, and reached out with her chakra to her two teammates to create their first mind link.

 _'C_ _an you hear me?'_

She was tired and in much pain which made her voice come out as a whisper. But from the way Shino perked up to look at her with a slight quirk of his eyebrow, she could tell it had worked and the communication had been made.

 _'So, we have two nins that are more than likely S-Ranked and want us dead. As if that weren't troublesome enough, Genma-Sensei is unconscious and bleeding from his head_ and _there's no_ _way of knowing how long it will take for any backup to arrive.'_

Really, it was surprising how calm yet annoyed the boy sounded through the link. Was his lazy attitude really that much a part of him?

 _'What are we going to do?'_ Shino questioned with a glance in the direction they had just come from, analyzing all of their choices.

"Oh, little children, won't you come out and play?" Shit... That voice... Her father had warned against a snake like voice before. The hissing... Could it possibly be one of Konoha's greatest traitors?

With a sneer of pain and irritation, Ino screwed her eyes shut in thought. Luckily for them, the man that had started all of this didn't seem too keen on moving from his position in the clearing.

 _'I have an idea.'_

The girl hissed through the connection, breathing in to try and keep herself composed. Although it wasn't as if she were being irrational in her worry. If the man truly was who she thought it was... Well, she had more than a right to be freaking out!

 _'Is it a good idea?'_

At this, Ino let out a humorless chuckle.

 _'It's an idea.'_ The blonde then opened her eyes to look at the Aburame near her, immediately catching his attention. _'Shino_ , _use your kikaichū to move them more towards Shika. Shika, use your Shadow possession to hold them both still. I only need a few seconds.'_

 _'I don't know how to hold two people still, and even then, it's a risk because they can break it easily.'_ Shikamaru sighed, shaking his head softly. _'Not to mention, my chakra levels are paltry at this point.'_

 _'I know that!'_ Ino hissed back, _'_ But _what choice do we have? They just knocked our sensei out! We are talking about a Sannin and some weird guy with a mask. I'm not going down without a fight.'_

She was grateful that Shino didn't question why she thought it was a Sannin and instead actually backed her up. She knew it was a crazy idea, but it was the only thing she could come up. And it wasn't as if the two boys were trying to think of anything!

 _'She's right. It's a crazy idea, but if it will give us a fighting chance, what choice is there.'_

 _'...Troublesome...'_

Shino quickly let loose his kikaichū in a wide arc to the left. He knew that in the direction the bugs went, the men would avoid if they were smart. If not, they would get their chakra eaten by those bugs.

The snake nin was amused by the swarm of bugs. Did these children really think they could win? He could beat them in his sleep. Oh, how _much_ fun they would be when he experimented on them! The very thought of such capable bodies at his disposable... It was so great the man licked his lips in anticipation.

But the man's thoughts of using those bodies in amazing new ways were cut off when he suddenly couldn't find himself able to move. Still, his amusement never ended. If anything, it increased.

The shadow user. So, the bug nin had been a distraction for the shadow nin.

How _adorable_.

This was fine, though. He knew how to reverse the flow of his chakra to get out of this fickle little trap. It would only take a few seconds and minimal effort on his part. Although he knew the Nara was undoubtedly already running on fumes.

Except in the few seconds that he and his partner would need to reverse their chakra, two senbons came flying at them. Both hit their marks... But Orochimaru began to be truly be amused by the genin he found himself facing.

One senbon embedded itself into the shoulder of the Sannin, while the second one had only pierced the sleeve of the cloak his partner wore.

Orochimaru knew immediately that senbon had been poisoned. "Oh, little girl did you really think using a poison against me was a good idea? I am a poison master," he cackled at the group of genin darkly, for he knew they knew how horribly they had messed up. Had they truly thought it would have been so simple to defeat _him_?

With a small burst of chakra, he freed himself and Tobi from the shadow possession. And with a feral grin, the snake nin began to advance to where the girl was hiding at, while Tobi went for the shadow user.

Shikamaru collapsed after the jutsu was broken. It had drained most of what was left of his chakra. Shino created a screen of kikaichū in front of his teammates and himself. And this tactic of diversion work for all of two seconds before the snake user unleashed a fireball that killed the majority of his swarm. And this caused the Aburame to let out an anguished cry, pain crashing through his sense as he recalled what was left of his swarm back to him.

Now, there were only two genin left standing. There was no doubt about it. They were going to die.

Ino grabbed the kunai hidden beneath the folds of her kimono sleeves all the while Shino grabbed one from his weapons pouch. Both nodded at each other and ran towards their fallen teammates. They didn't need to communicate without any words to know what they were to do. Ino took up a defensive stance in front of Shikamaru, leaving Shino to stand before their fallen teacher.

No matter how hopeless the situation might look, they were shinobi. And they weren't about to allow their teammate or sensei to get harmed any further.

Ino had been prepared to defend Shikamaru with her life. But she _hadn't_ been prepared for the snake like man to move so quickly.

She hadn't even seen him move. One second he had been standing at the other side of the clearing and the next he was right in front of her, a sick smirk on his pale face.

Because of years of honing her reactions, Ino was able to lash out with her kunai, trying to stab the man without a thought. But he only knocked the weapon away without barely a bat of his eye. Then, with his smile turning even more deranged, he grabbed the blonde by the throat and hauled her up to look at her at eye level.

"Oh, you and I will have _so much_ fun little girl. I can't wait to experiment with you," He hissed as he licked his lips.

He was a _freak_. And Ino was hurt and she could feel her oxygen slowly leaving her. This situation was hopeless! There was nothing she could do! She had tried her best and failed. Tears stung at her eyes, slipping out even as she tried to maintain some kind of silence.

As if being carried like some kind of rag doll hadn't been humiliating enough, Ino suddenly found a slick and wet _thing_ running across her cheek, catching one tear and licking all the way up to the corner of her _eye_.

She couldn't help the almost violent shivers of revulsion that passed through her.

And while this happened to the blonde, Shino tried his own best to keep the second attacker away from their teacher.

Tobi easily dodged to the right as the bug nin slashed at him with his kunai. And with a quick and painful kick, Tobi sent the younger shinobi into a tree a few feet back; effectively knocking him out.

Turning towards Orochimaru, he told the man; "Sempai, I sense others near-by."

Orochimaru let the girl fall to the ground. "I'll be seeing you around." He hissed at her before taking off with Tobi.

He had been having his fun. But that wouldn't be worth the headache of taking on more Konoha shinobi. Besides, he needed to keep Konoha in the dark about what he was doing for the moment. It brought him an endless amount of joy to see them floundering about in unease.

They were gone before the Konoha nin ever appeared.

-*()*-

The four-man cell arrived in the clearing shortly after the two had hastily retreated.

"It's clear, the only ones here are our own." Dove observed with her Byakugen activated, scanning their surroundings once more to make sure she was correct.

Nodding to her, the man in a dog mask barked out orders to the rest of the team; "Dove, get the Nara. Cat, take care of Shiranui. Rabbit, get the Aburame. I'll talk to the girl."

Ino couldn't move, she was terrified; the adrenaline that had been coursing through her veins had finally left her. If it wasn't for the team in front of her, she shuddered to think of what would have happened to her team.

Glancing to her right, she saw both Genma sensei and Shino unconscious and being checked over by two ANBU members. Her eyes lazily moved back in front of her when a hand was waved in front of her face.

"Girl, can you hear me?" The man in the dog mask asked as he knelt in front of her.

Finding that she couldn't form the words properly, the blonde simply nodded her head at the man. Her head was buzzing again, her body still hadn't processed the drug in her system. Aside from that, her left arm limply hung at her side and her soaking wet clothes stuck uncomfortably to her body.

"Who did this to your team?" The masked man asked softly, quickly realizing she was going through shock, even as he eyed her critically for any injuries.

She looked at him, floundering for the words; mouth opening and closing like a fish. Realizing she wasn't going to be any help in this condition, he shook his head. "It's alright. I need to put your shoulder back in place though. It will hurt, and you will pass out from it." He informed her, slowly raising his arms to not startle her.

Placing one hand on her shoulder and wrapping his other hand around her upper arm, he wrenched her shoulder back into place as fast as he dared. The blonde couldn't find the strength to scream from the pain, but she did allow the blessed darkness to carry her off into dream-world.

"Dove, get into contact with the tracking team. I want them out here within the next 4 hours, and hunting down whoever did this." Dog demanded of his subordinate, who nodded without needing any further explanations.

Grabbing a piece of paper, the woman hastily wrote out the coded message and placed it on the falcon that had found them, sending it back to Konoha.

"Alright, Cat and Dove get one of them each, Rabbit go into town and get their bags. We head back for Konoha." Dog told his team as he picked up the shadow user and the mind walker, one over each shoulder.

Rabbit helped Cat get Shiranui on his back, so he was carrying him piggyback style. Dove threw the Aburame over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

The purple haired woman in the rabbit mask left quickly to go into the town and retrieve their belongings.

"We'll meet her at the entrance to the town." The captain told the group, then they took off with the unconscious team.

* * *

 **Hospital in Konoha**

Shikamaru could feel his head pounding, like a weight was pressing against his frontal lobe. He could hear voices, but couldn't distinguish what was being said. Cracking an eye open, he blearily tried to see who was in the room. But it didn't do him any good, as he couldn't make out who was in the room.

Letting his eyes fall back shut, he only hoped this migraine would go away soon. It was being so _troublesome._

-*()*-

"Honestly the kids are lucky. They got away with a few lacerations, a dislocated shoulder, bruising, concussions, and chakra exhaustion." The doctor explained to the Clan Heads of the Aburame, Nara, and Yamanaka clans.

"Thank you doctor." Shibi Aburame nodded to the man, finality clear in his tone of voice.

After the doctor left, the three fathers looked at their children. A dozen thoughts passed through all of their minds, but the one they all shared was the same: 'Who the hell could have done this to _their_ kids?'

All of their individual injuries spoke of a rather worrisome story they had yet to decipher.

Shikamaru's chakra exhaustion allowed his father to know that his boy had done something completely uncharacteristic of him. He had given his all.

Shino's concussion worried Shibi for the simple reason that they were not taijutsu enthusiasts. Whoever had done this had gotten much too close to Shino for comfort.

And Ino's dislocated shoulder, coupled with the bruising around her throat, had Inoichi about an inch from seeing red.

"Inoichi, do you think you could go through their memories and found out what happened?" Shikaku looked at his old friend with worry swimming in his eyes, hope clear in his words.

He knew the Yamanaka would, on normal occasions, refuse the petition. After a rather stressful mission, it wasn't wise to begin riffling through memories. But Shikaku knew that it was different when it came to a fellow mind manipulator. Especially if said manipulator was one's own father.

Nodding his head, the blonde-haired man walked over the bed his daughter was on. It would be easier to go through her memories since she would know it was him and knew how to keep her psyche in order.

Lifting his hand, he placed it over her forehead and, with a small push of chakra, he was taken into her memories. Sifting through her memories was easy, as they had done this on one more occasion before this. He let himself be pulled into her memories from the time they reached Miura.

Leaving her head after he had gotten all the information, the older blonde's face was pale. Sinking down into the chair by her bed, he felt anger at the fact that his precious baby girl had been forced to take on a damn _Sannin_.

What the hell had the Hokage been thinking?!

Taking a breath to calm down, he told the other two men what he had learned; "Daichi had drugged my daughter. Apparently, he was kidnapping kids and selling them. But the part that we didn't know... He was smelling them to _Orochimaru_. The team got into a fight with him when he tried to kidnap Ino. Genma took an explosion and concussion to protect the kids from some unknown partner that was working with the god damn Sannin. Then the kids decided to fight back. Anbu arrived, and Orochimaru left."

Shikaku and Shibi both sank down into the chairs next the beds that housed their respective children. This was a complication of the highest degree. What was Orochimaru doing so close to Konoha and in Fire Country no less?

"Shibi how do you feel about teaming up with the original Ino-Shika-Cho formation?" Shikaku asked the other man suddenly, looking up at the Aburame.

"Will the Hokage allow it?" The bug nin asked back, looking back at the man without a change to his facial expression.

"He damn well better. He sent our kids out there and they end up being attacked by his wayward psychopathic student." Inoichi growled, still fuming over what he had seen the snake nin do to his daughter.

"I believe it would be good for me to stretch my legs, so to speak." Shibi voiced to them, by way of an answer.

"Good, I'll put in the paperwork and get us out of here as soon as the kids wake up." Shikaku expressed to them, ready to go put a snake nin out of his misery.

The three men fell into silence as they waited for their children to wake up. Each one coming up with their own ways to end the lives of those who thought to harm their children.

-*()*-

The next time one of them awoke, it was Shino. Blinking his eyes open, he glanced around the room and saw his father sitting beside his bed, with the rest of his team on beds in the room. He was in a bed next to Ino, with Genma sensei and Shikamaru on beds across from them.

When he moved to sit up, he had awoken the three fathers. "What happened?" He asked his father, still fuzzy about how they weren't still in the forest or... The thought of death had him paling and looking at his father, trying to reassure himself that he was alive.

"You all were attacked by one of the Sannin and another man. They knocked you all unconscious before the Anbu team showed up." Shibi explained to his son, voice laced with relief.

Nodding his head, the boy rested back against the pillow on the bed, and asked his next question; "How is everyone else?"

"Shikamaru has chakra exhaustion, Genma has a concussion and some mild burns from the explosion, Ino has a dislocated shoulder with some bruising on her neck, her toxicology report also showed a significant amount of a sedative in her system." Shibi explained to his son, watching the emotions flicker across his face.

He knew his son was blaming himself for what had happened. But he wasn't quite sure as to what to say, since words had never been his strong suit. Thankfully he was saved by Inoichi.

"Shino it's not your fault. What happened out there is not on _any_ of you. The team did the best they could given the situation. You all managed to hold off a Sannin and an unknown accomplice until back up arrived. You did good, and if it wasn't for you..." At this, the blonde choked up and looked away. "My daughter would be dead."

"Thank you, Yamanaka-sama;" Shino responded, grateful for the older man.

-*()*-

When Ino woke up both Shikamaru and Shino were awake and sitting up in their beds. "What the hell happened?" She asked the two boys.

"Well you got drugged and kidnapped. We came after you, found out it was Orochimaru that was trying to kidnap you. Got into a fight, sensei got knocked unconscious by an exploding tag, Shikamaru ended up with chakra exhaustion by trying to hold two people in place, you tried poisoning them, they killed a lot of my hive, and then the Anbu team showed up and took us home." Shino explained to the girl, counting on his fingers the things that had happened.

"Oh," was her only reply. She remembered the crazy plan she thought up the night before. "Wait, where is sensei?" She asked looking around the room and only seeing her and the two boys in there.

"He got released earlier. Said he would be back in a few hours to get us out, something about needing to file the mission report. Our parents were here earlier, but they left saying something about how they needed to talk to Hokage-sama." Shikamaru drawled, wishing he could already be outside and looking at the clouds.

Suddenly the door to their room slammed into the wall and three heads swiveled to the doorway, only to find a broadly smiling Anko Mitarashi.

"Sup kiddies! How do you feel about an early release?" She offered jovially, excited for the plan she had for these little minions.

"What's the catch?" Shino asked, eyes narrowing behind his glasses.

"Oh, we are going to fuck with your sensei a bit." She answered, surprised when none of the kids were looking her in her eyes. She thought she could have fun with that, at least.

"Wait, what are we going to do?" Ino asked, curiosity piqued. This might be worth the early release from the hospital.

... Wait a minute... Was she really thinking about going with the crazed Anko? And were Shikamaru and Shino actually not fighting with her about it? ... Maybe they had _all_ suffered from concussions the doctors hadn't noticed. But Genma sensei had left them... So... Well, they could fuck a bit with him. It wouldn't be all that bad, right? Besides, she hated hospitals.

"I'm going to take you all to the forest of death. We'll wait out there until he finds us. Easy enough for you little rascals?" The older woman told them, hands on her hips. Geez, what was with these kids and asking questions while not looking her in the eyes?

... Could Genma have told them something about looking at her? That little bastard! These kids better agree to messing with him!

"I'm in." The blonde answered, wanting to mess with her sensei for once instead of it being the other way around.

Oh yes. Even after everything that had happened, she remember the things Genma had made them go through. And it seemed only fair to get a bit of revenge.

"Fine. So long as I can watch the clouds." Shikamaru answered, secretly in the same boat as Ino.

Three heads turned to look at the last one who hadn't answered yet. "Alright."

Clapping her hands together, she gathered up the genins and used a simple teleport jutsu to bring them to just outside of the Forest of Death.

* * *

 **Outskirts of the Forest of Death**

"Now stay with me at all times. There are a bunch of things in here that can kill you if you get to close to them." The woman explained to the group.

The three genin nodded their heads, and followed the purple haired woman into the Forest. Anko kept them clear of most of the problems they would face. She wanted to fuck with Genma, not hurt the kids, after all.

They reached the center of the Forest in a little under an hour, and went into the tower situated there. Once they were on one of the balconies overlooking the forest, Shikamaru laid down to cloud watch. Ino started talking to Anko and Shino was left looking out into the forest, searching for any sign of their sensei.

"So, blondie, I hear you almost got kidnapped by Orochimaru." Anko said, venom in her voice as she hissed the name.

"Yeah, and apparently trying to poison him doesn't work as well as with our sensei." Ino answered, still freaked out about the entire situation. A shudder ran through her body when she thought of how he licked her cheek.

That man... Couldn't have been a man... He couldn't have been human!

"Yeah, that's the thing; he's not entirely human anymore. And he's had so much exposure to poisons that it would take more than what's on your weapons to even faze him."

The information had Ino thanking her lucky stars for having survived the encounter. Then, with a shake of her head, the blonde decided to change the topic of the conversation. She didn't like talking about that _monster_. It made her feel dirty.

"So Anko-sensei, what cool things can you do?" The blue-eyed girl inquired, wondering if all the stories her sensei had told them about the woman were true or not.

"Well I can summon a giant snake!" Anko responded, proud of herself. Though it wasn't nearly as big as Orochimaru's, she still hadn't figured out how to get the king of the snakes on her side yet.

"Can you show us?" Ino begged excitedly, finally something really cool to see.

* * *

 **Hospital**

"God dammit, where could those kids be?" Genma wondered aloud. He had come back from his briefing with the Hokage and was going to get his little minions out of the hospital. Only he couldn't find them anywhere.

Stopping a nurse, he politely asked, "Excuse me miss, have you seen the three kids that were in room 1204?"

"Um no, but I did see Mitarashi-san in the room a while ago." The nurse answered before scampering off to check on the rest of her patients.

Closing his eyes, he pinched the bridge of nose and kept repeating the same mantra over in his head, 'Must not kill fellow shinobi, must not kill fellow shinobi'

Grumbling to himself, he left the hospital and went to the T & I woman was unpredictable. But if he were lucky, then she would have taken them somewhere easy to access.

Once he reached the building, he began his search for that annoyance of a woman, and his three wayward minions. While he was searching through the office space, he ran into Ibiki Morino.

"What brings you here Shiranui?" The scarred man asked, curious as to why the senbon user was in his building.

"Anko kidnapped my team and I'm trying to find them." Was the answer growled out by the newly appointed Jōnin.

"Have you tried the Forest of Death? She tends to hide there when she wants to avoid her work." Ibiki replied, knowing fully well where her hiding spots were. He wasn't in charge of T & I for no reason. And while the woman might seem unpredictable to most, she was actually rather easy to read. It just took a lot of patience and time to find the pattern that was almost imperceptible to those that didn't pay attention.

"Why the fuck would she take 3 genin there?! I'm going to kill that woman!" Exclaimed the senbon enthusiast as he turned on his heel and began stomping out of the building.

The head of T & I decided to follow him, just to make sure he didn't _actually_ kill her. She was still one of his best interrogators. She may be a headache, but it would take too much paperwork to even begin to explain just why Genma shouldn't be imprisoned for murdering a fellow shinobi.

* * *

 **Forest of Death**

The sound of an explosion going off with some very loud cussing put a stop to the show and tell that Anko had put on for the kids. But the woman was smiling broadly, proud at the shocked and amazed faces the kids wore.

It was nice to have others appreciate her abilities.

"Umm Anko-sensei, are you sure that Genma-sensei will be alright?" Ino asked thoughtfully, head tilted to the side.

"Yeah, that's nothing. You guys have to pass this place to become Chunin." Anko answered, waving off their concern as another explosion reached their ears.

The three genin shared the same look of horror at the fact that they would have to come back through here again, except without a guide to help them along.

"God dammit Mitarashi, I told you that they were _my_ minions." Genma shouted as he and an oddly amused Ibiki reached the center of the forest.

The scarred man was clearly amused. But it looked odd on his scarred face. It almost actually scared the genin around. Why would a man that terrifying possibly be the amused?!

Genma was covered in dirt, and who knows what else from her traps from hell. Although Ibiki was looking as pristine as ever. Not even a speck of dust on him.

The two men put chakra into their feet and quickly climbed up the side of the building. "Anko, you know better than to take another's team." Ibiki chastised, then glared at the woman, all traces of amusement leaving. " _And_ you still have paperwork sitting on your desk." He crossed his arms over his chest with this, which made the woman let out a long suffered, dramatic burst of air, before she turned around and walked off. Ibiki followed after her without a further word to Genma or his team.

"What did you learn today?" Genma growled at his team, honestly curious about what they would answer.

"That you aren't nearly as cool as Anko-sensei." Shikamaru sighed from his position laying down.

"Sensei, you have to teach us to summon animals!" Ino demanded, foot stomping on the ground.

Pinching the bridge of his nose again, Genma could feel a migraine coming on. Of course, she had to show them that part of her skill set. Why couldn't she just keep to mind games?

* * *

Please read and review!

Next chapter:

"So is there any particular reason you three are hiding under blankets in my living room?" Genma asked, with an eyebrow arched as he lifted his coffee cup to his lips.

A tuft of blonde hair, followed by a single blue eye peaked out over a mass of blankets. The girl mumbled out, "Our parents wanted to give us the talk." She disappeared back under the mass of blankets.


	5. The Ties that Bind

Thank you to all who have reviewed, added to their follow list, favorited, or just read the story! Shout-out to Varmint for being an amazing beta and putting up with my craziness. I don't own Naruto or really anything, other than this plot-line.

I wanted to make some things about this story clear: 1. It is not a one-person centric fic. It is based around this entire team, everyone will get their chance to shine. 2. I know that I'm leaving out some significant characteristics right now. I'm leaving them out because I never understood them and morally do not agree with them; for instance, the sexualization of 12-year-old girls or boys. So, there will be no declaration of utter devotion or flirting with everything with a pulse. 3. I will be introducing some of the other characters in this chapter, the rest will come in within the next two chapters, please be patient if you're waiting to see them show up. And I will tell you that at first Sakura is going to seem bitchy, she will change. It's part of her growth.

Any questions, feel free to leave a review or send me a PM!

Merry Christmas everyone!

* * *

 **Hokage Office**

"Are you out of your goddamn mind?!" Roared Genma, hands clenched into fist at his side. "You want to send them out again? Their first mission ended with them going up against your fucking psychopath of a student, and they still aren't sleeping properly! And I know that because I see how tired they are when we meet up for training!"

The elder Sarutobi stood up and slammed his hands down onto the desk, effectively shutting the senbon enthusiast up. "First and foremost, I am your Hokage, you will do as I say. Secondly, just because you were a bodyguard for the fourth and myself doesn't mean you can you throw a fit like a child when I give an order. Get your ass in line now. I will _not_ tell you again."

"Yeah, it just means I got to watch one be a self-sacrificing idiot that left his kid alone to be shunned by the village, and no one can tell the kid why, let alone help him... _And_ I get the see the other put my team at risk with a crazy plan. All simply because he heard from someone who heard through the grapevine that Suna is supposed to use the Chunin Exams to invade us!" Genma snarled out, thoroughly pissed off. Spinning on his heel, the man stalked out of the office, not allowing for the Hokage to tell him anything as he did so.

The Hokage, sat back down in his chair and folded his arms, creating a spot on his hands to rest his chin. 'Genma, it's for their own good. They need to learn this now.' He thought to himself, but wisely gave his former bodyguard time to cool down.

Genma was not a man to anger easily; usually he brushed everything off. But the elder man supposed it did have something to do with the life or death experience that had been experienced by his team only a few weeks prior. He had hoped they could have moved on from that point. But it seemed that, even if they had managed to do so, their teacher had not.

* * *

 **Konoha Main Gate**

Shikamaru, Shino, Chouji, and Ino were all awaiting the return of their fathers. They were supposed to be back today, hopefully with some answers as to just why they had left so suddenly. Three had fretted over their fathers leaving on the impromptu mission, while the fourth was unclear and confused as to what had been happening.

"So, how's training going for you guys?" Chouji asked to start a conversation, all the while munching on a bag of chips.

"Our sensei is Satan, but he seems to be good enough." Shikamaru drawled as he looked up at the clouds.

"He's not that bad…. _anymore_." Ino interjected. She had gotten rather fond of the crazed senbon chewing shinobi after some time.

"Ino, that man tried to kill us with his first test." Shino contested in his monotone, while still conveying his disbelief that she would defend the man.

"Yeah, but- "Ino was interrupted by Chouji announcing that he saw their fathers.

The genin all turned to see their fathers walking up the path to the main gate, one man that was undoubtedly a prisoner in tow. Once they were closer, it became apparent who they had with them. Daichi Araki.

Ino unconsciously tensed up, while both of her teammates took steps toward her. They moved themselves, just slightly, so they could easily block her view of the man.

Once she noticed this, Ino snorted at the actions of her teammates. They were protective, even though neither cared to admit it. Especially since that night.

But recently it had become ridiculous. They wouldn't even let her walk home by herself!

The group of kids were suddenly joined by two more people; Ibiki Morino and Anko Mitarashi. They were both there to take the prisoner off their dad's hands to interrogate him.

As the group of Jōnin moved closer to the gate, the children could see that the prisoner with them was a little worse for wear. Bruises decorated his face, neck, and he was walking with a limp. He had a frantic look in his eyes, and kept muttering about how he was sorry and never meant for anything to happen.

The clenched jaws of their fathers alerted the children and the interrogators that they were in a foul mood from dealing with this man. As far as any of them were concerned, he was just as responsible for what had happened as Orochimaru was.

Once they reached the main gate, Daichi saw Ino and made a mad dash to the girl, hands raised to grab her. Seeing the man's face stunned the girl, forcing her to remember a night she would much rather forget. She stood stunned, frozen as memories forced their way into the front of her mind.

Luckily, though, the paralyzed blonde was immediately shoved back behind her two teammates who were already armed. But it was for naught, for Anko flitted in front of them and cut him off.

Catching his hand, she bent it at an unusual angle until a snap was heard. "If you ever try to touch her again, you'll lose more than your hand." The woman threatened, smile on her lips while she glanced down to just below his waist line.

Inoichi was being held back by Shikaku's shadow possession, it was the only thing keeping him from killing the other man right there. Unfortunately, they still needed the man alive to answer a few questions.

Ibiki quickly moved behind the man then grabbed the back of his neck to begin hauling him away to the Torture and Interrogation Department.

"I'm Ibiki Morino, and that is Anko Mitarashi. We will be conducting your interrogation on this lovely day." Ibiki allowed his amusement to show clearly, for once leaving his usual calm and dark façade to instill even more fear on the man. A dark smile graced his lips as he thought of all the great ways to get him singing like a canary, then he grunted, "Anko, let's go."

Turning to the group, she let out a grin and told them, "Run along little chickadees. I know you have training." Then she left, following behind the head of T&I. But before she was gone from their sight, they heard her cackle in a way on she could, letting them know that she was more than eager to get her hands on the man.

The woman's mad cackling broke Ino out of her paralyzed daze. And then she looked at both of her teammates, a small smile finding its way onto her lips. For a moment, the three looked at each other, then the girl broke the silence. "Anyone else think we have two senseis for the price of one?" The blonde shrugged her shoulders, not at all bothered by the turn of events. Having two senseis instead of one? That was amazing!

Skipping over to her father, she placed a kiss on his cheek and told him, "Bye daddy, I'll see you later!" Then she turned on her heel and began walking down the path that would lead to the training grounds.

The two boys shared a look of disbelief at their female teammate. It was like she could flip a switch and go from one emotion to the next in seconds! Shaking their heads at her perceived odd logic, they nonetheless agreed silently with her observation, and after a wave to each of their fathers respectively, followed their hellion of a teammate.

Chouji watched them leave, confused about what had just transpired. Turning to his father, he asked, "Dad, what's going on?"

"Don't worry about it son. How about we get some barbecue?" Chouza offered to distract the boy, knowing that food would get his son's mind off the inner workings of Team 3.

Chouji let out a whoop and left with his father, regaling him with the stories of what had been going on while they were gone. Which left the heads of the Nara, Aburame, and Yamanaka clans standing by the main gate.

"Can I release you from this now?" Shikaku asked with a sigh after a few seconds of silence, hoping by now his old friend had calmed down.

"Yeah. I need to go to T&I anyway." Inoichi growled out, he wanted to be there to see that _man_ suffer. With that, the blonde man was let go of the shadow possession, only to stalk off and head in the direction that Ibiki and Anko had disappeared to.

"Twenty thousand ryo, he tries to barge in on the interrogation." Shikaku smirked, looking towards the only man left with him.

"Nara, I know better than bet against you." Shibi shook his head, a hint of amusement hidden beneath the monotone of his voice. It had been good to get out and stretch his legs, and working with the original Ino-Shika-Cho formation had been an _interesting_ experience to say the least. "You go ahead and go home. I'll file the mission report." The Aburame turning his body so he was facing the direction of the Jōnin headquarters, knowing fully well the other's wife was worried about her husband.

Nodding his head in thanks, the Nara began the trek back home; eager about seeing his wife. He couldn't wait to tell her about what he had just witnessed.

* * *

 **Aburame Compound (Next Morning)**

Shino was greeted by the sight of his father sitting at the kitchen table when he came down from his room after a rather fitful night's sleep. Grabbing a glass, he filled it with water, then sat down at the table across from his father, watching the man curiously.

"Shino, we need to talk." The elder Aburame started, voice heavy and serious.

The truth was that he had been hoping to avoid this conversation and leave it for as late as possible. But Inoichi and Shikaku had both made their opinions rather clear. They wanted to have this talk with their children _now._ And seeing had been dragged into the insanity that was once the Ino-Shika-Cho formation, Shibi would also have to deal with these rather odd individuals.

"What's wrong dad?" Shino questioned immediately, brows furrowed. He didn't think he had done anything wrong, but one could never be too sure.

"We need to have the talk." Shibi said, then elaborated; "The sex talk."

Before he could even begin, his son had rushed out of the house. It actually took him a few seconds to truly make sure that his son had left so quickly. But once the man was sure that his son wasn't with him anymore, he let out a long-suffered sigh and shook his head.

If this was how Shino had reacted, there was no doubt in his mind that Ino and Shikamaru would giving their own fathers the same problem.

* * *

 **Yamanaka Compound**

"Princess come downstairs, I need to talk to you." Inoichi called from the bottom of the stairs. He could hear his daughter moving around upstairs, and, even though he truly didn't want to, the need to have this talk was much too great to leave it for later.

She appeared at the top of the steps, and skipped down them, unaware of the conversation her dad wanted to have. "What's up daddy?" She asked, not completely oblivious to the tension in his shoulders, or how he was scratching the back of his head. He only did that when he was nervous, or when it was a subject, he didn't want to talk about it.

"Let's sit down in the living room." He told his daughter, placing his arm around her shoulders to steer the girl into the room. But once he made contact, the girl flinched, even though it was minutely.

Neither Yamanaka commented on this.

Once they were both seated, the girl looked confused at her father, for she was curious as to what had him in a tiff.

"It's time we had the talk." He started, but was soon interrupted by her.

"We already went over that in school!" This was embarrassing, she didn't want to hear her father try and give her the sex talk!

"We need to talk a bit more in depth, and it's also about the fact that you will be going on missions with _boys. O_ _vernight_." He stressed both words at the end, making a large blush appear on the girl's face.

"Oh, my god dad!" The girl screeched, horrified at the line of thinking her dad was on.

Faster than he thought his daughter could react, Ino released a smoke bomb in the house. Then she successfully made a quick escape from her home, leaving her stunned father behind.

Inoichi began rubbing his temples after a few seconds. He had known his daughter would not react too well to this talk. But he hadn't expected her to be able to get away so quickly... He would now need to track her down. Although, first, he needed to get this smoke out of the house before it set off the fire alarms.

Though that was for naught, a few seconds later a screeching sound in his kitchen alerted him to the fact that yes, the smoke detectors worked. And rather well, at that.

* * *

 **Nara Compound**

Shikamaru was surprised to wake up on his own. Usually his mother had yelled at him to get up by now. Realizing something was going on, the boy silently creeped out of his room, and towards the place his parents' voices were coming from.

"Are you sure about this dear?" Shikaku asked his wife, making Shikamaru note how... Well... _Not okay_ he sounded.

This immediately made the young Nara worry. But he stayed hidden, wishing to hear more before he did anything.

"Yes, and you know Inoichi will pitch a fit if we don't talk to him." Yoshino replied, with a shake of her head. Really, if her husband thought she could be troublesome, then he _clearly_ he hadn't spent enough time around Inoichi.

"But this is Shikamaru we're talking about. I doubt he's even interested in girls. Let alone Inoichi's princess." The man drawled, for he knew how truly lazy his son was.

Eyes widening, Shikamaru couldn't help the slight feeling of displeasure that rose up in him.

"We are having the talk with him and that's final." Yoshino told her husband, raising an eyebrow, daring him to tell her no.

One didn't have to be a Nara to put two and two together. And this equation's answer was that his parents wanted to have the sex talk with him. A talk that Shikamaru wasn't all that eager to hear.

Hastily retreating, he went back into his room and closed the door quietly. After putting on his clothes, he leaped out of his window, and snuck out of his house.

Most of the times, he would weather whatever talk his parents wanted to have because he was too lazy to get away. But for this one... Well, he didn't mind being active for once.

* * *

 **Konoha Shopping District**

As Ino was walking up the path that led to the shopping district, she noticed two very familiar males already there. Her teammates. Picking up the pace, she jogged over to them. And once she was in front of them, the girl, "Why are you two here?"

"Because our parents wanted to give us the talk." Shikamaru sighed. Really it was just so _troublesome._ Parents were much too difficult sometimes.

"Seriously? My dad wanted to give me the talk too." Ino gasped, looking between both her teammates. That was just way too weird. "Do you think they're up to something?"

Both boys nodded, but Shino interjected before she could ask them what they thought their fathers were up to. "By my estimation, we have maybe 30 minutes before our fathers find us."

"Anyone else up for a game of hide and don't find?" The blonde asked, seriously not wanting to have _that_ conversation with her dad.

"Where do you suggest we hide?" Shikamaru asked, "My dad knows all the places I would hide."

"As would mine." Shino agreed, which made the blonde huff with a nod of her own.

"Mine too..." But then her eyes lit up slightly, "What about sensei's apartment?" she offered, head tilted to the side as she thought about it, "It _would_ be the last place our dads would think to look for us."

"Do we know where he lives?" Shino asked, eyebrow raised at the girl.

"We can find him. We're shinobi, right?" She asked rhetorically. Grabbing both of their arms, she pulled them behind her as she set off to find where their sensei's apartment was. The boys just shared the twin looks of exasperation at their female compatriot.

 **Genma's Apartment**

Genma could feel a shift in the air in his humble abode. Groggily blinking his eyes open, he wondered what felt off. Then he realized that there were three other chakra signatures in his home.

Grumbling to himself, he pulled the covers off and let his feet hit the wooden floor. Once he got up from his sitting position, he pulled on a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt so he wasn't caught in a state of undress by the three familiar people. Padding out of his room, he walked down the short hallway to the kitchen.

Glancing to the side, he saw on his couch a mass of blankets that had most assuredly not been there last night when he went to sleep. Shaking his head at the antics of his little minions, the senbon enthusiast turned on his coffee pot. He was going to need something to deal with this so early in the morning.

Once he made a cup of coffee, he turned fully, eyes peering into the living. "I teach you how to pick locks and this is how you use that skill? Is there any particular reason why you three are hiding under blankets in my living room?" Genma asked, with an eyebrow arched as he raised the coffee cup to his lips.

A tuft of blonde hair slowly made its way upward, followed by a single blue eye. "Our parents wanted to give us _the talk_." The girl mumbled out before she disappeared back into the mass of blankets that were housing her and her teammates.

Genma let out a chuckle at the theatrics of his team. Really, he expected it from her, but not the other two. It was good that they were all rubbing off on each other in a way. Though, he supposed, she could have always just dragged them here.

Pushing off the counter he was leaning against, he walked into the living room. Sitting on the coffee table, he placed his coffee cup next to him. Then he pulled the top of the blankets down to see three sets of eyes looking at him.

"First, we don't break into houses unless it's a mission. Second, you all have a choice. Either have the talk with your fathers, or spend the next week doing Guy's challenges." Genma told the group, smirk ever present on his lips.

These kids.

"Sensei, it _was_ a mission. Our mission to get away from our fathers." Shikamaru contested, immediately seeing the loophole that was presented in the older man's logic.

"Nice try kid." Genma chuckled, really these kids. As he drained the rest of his coffee cup, he popped a senbon in his mouth. Rolling it around, he waited for the kids to answer him.

The three genin shared a look, which equated to, they did _not_ want to train with Guy-sensei, even more so than they did _not_ want to have that conversation with their parents.

Shino speaking up for the group, informed their instructor; "Yes, we will have the talk with our parents."

"Great, now you all stay there, I'm going to make us some breakfast while we wait for your parents to show up." He told the group as he stood up and grabbed his coffee cup.

The senbon enthusiast made his way back into his kitchen, and placed his cup back down on the counter. He rifled through his fridge to find a few ingredients for a simple breakfast; eggs, sausage, and toast. He went about making the food, while occasionally glancing back to make sure the kids were still in their spots on his couch.

Once the food was made, he grabbed some plates from the cupboard above the coffee maker. Once he heard the patter of footsteps, he looked behind him to see his minions had helped to set the table and grabbed the orange juice from the fridge.

The food was served, and everyone was sitting around the table. Genma hid a smirk at the fact that all three of them had a thankfully healthy appetite and were gorging down his food. He knew he wasn't that good of cook, but these kids made it seem like it was gourmet.

Once everyone had their fill of the food, Ino shooed their sensei into the living room. Something about how they were going to clean up. The boys begrudgingly helped her out, under threat of her making them believe they were five-year-old girls obsessed with pink. Apparently, they did not want to find out if she could really do this.

A knock on the door alerted him to the fact the fathers were standing on the other side of the door. Getting up from the couch, he rounded the corner and opened his front door. Moving aside, he let the three clan leaders enter his house.

The three fathers nodded their heads in thanks to Genma, before turning to look disapprovingly at their children.

"Well I'll leave you guys to it. Lock up when you leave!" Genma chuckled softly, making a quick escape out the open door. He did _not_ want to be there for that lecture.

And as he walked away from his apartment, Genma heard the shrill shout that undoubtedly came from Ino, all the while something thudded against his door. With a shake of his head, the man just continued walking off, glad that he wasn't the one that was to speak to the hellions about such a delicate matter.

* * *

 **Training Ground 2 (Next Morning)**

The three genin of team 3 stood by a sturdy tree while they waited for Genma to show up. Ino had her arms crossed over her chest and busied herself by tapping her foot impatiently. Shikamaru laid down in the grass to cloud watch perfectly comfortable with waiting. And Shino leaned back against the tree as he wondered where their sensei was. It wasn't like the man to be late.

Ino had been feeling off the past few weeks. It seemed as if she was always hyper-aware of her surroundings. Every nerve in her body always firing, telling her it was not time to relax, like she had to keep moving or something bad would happen.

"What's wrong with you?" Shikamaru grumbled from the ground. It hadn't escaped his notice that the blonde seemed unlike herself for the past few weeks. She was more jittery than normal, and to tell the truth, both he and Shino had been getting worried about her.

Sure, she could try and act normal. But she wasn't _always_ acting normal. And that was enough to worry her teammates.

"I'm just anxious to get started." She lied to them. It was hard to explain what she was feeling and she didn't want the boys to feel sorry for her. Or worse, think she was weak because she couldn't control her emotions.

Shino stood quietly for a moment and Ino believed he would call her out. But what he said next had her frowning for a very different reason than what she though. "I thought Genma Sensei said we wouldn't have train with Guy-sensei if we had the talk with our parents." The Aburame's eyebrows furrowed at the perceived betrayal of trust and Ino began to feel betrayed as well.

The blonde and brunet looked to where their teammate was looking, and sure enough, there was their sensei along with Team Guy walking towards the training ground.

Ino let out a huff and rolled her eyes, really the nerve of the guy!

Shikamaru let out a grunt as he ambled up to his feet. This was going to be _troublesome._

"Good morning, chickadees!"

"We had the talk with our parents." Shikamaru didn't even bother to greet the man back before he was calling him out on his betrayal. "I thought our deal was clear."

"Deal?" Guy questioned, which made Genma wave him off and glare at the Nara.

"That's not what Guy and his team are here for, deer boy. I stand by my word." Genma shook his head softly, but soon sighed and explained. "They're here for taijutsu training. Guy and I were teammates back in our genin day and we both thought it would be good for both teams to mix things up."

All three of the kids blinked at him, actually caught off guard by what he said.

"So... You didn't stab us in the back?"

"Geez, Ino. Thank you for all the trust in me." Genma deadpanned, then motioned for Guy's team to step forward. "Get to work."

The Hyuga and the girl both stepped forward without too much trouble. But Guy's clone seemed to be frozen in place, eyes wide as he looked at...

"You've got to be kidding me." The senbon enthusiast hissed under his breath. When he followed the kid's line of sight, he found none other than Ino.

Just what he needed. For mini-Guy to have a crush on the Yamanaka princess.

"Shikamaru, you're going to be training with Neji." Genma called, which made the clone turn to him with wide eyes. Undoubtedly, he wanted to be paired up with the blonde girl. But Genma wasn't really feeling up for running away from an enraged Inoichi because the kid did something that was considered insulting by the girl. So, instead, he paired both girls together and had the clone fight with Shino.

Ino didn't really seem to mind to spend some time sparring against a girl. Shikamaru, though, glared at Genma with more hate than Genma thought the lazy kid was capable of. Shino merely nodded respectfully and stepped towards his opponent, whose shoulders had sagged for a second before he'd jumped up and began prattling about youthful nonsense.

The kids split off and began to fight slowly, all becoming accustomed to their new partners fighting style. And once enough time had passed and the kids were all enthralled in their respective matches, Genma deemed it safe enough to speak to his old teammate.

Both men stood at the edge of the clearing, Genma leaning against a tree with Guy next to him. "The Hokage wants to send us out on another mission. But I don't know if I want to accept it, these kids got pretty fucked up with the last one." Genma told his companion honestly.

One of the good things about Guy was that he didn't need anything to be sugar coated. He took everything at face value, just like he _gave_ everything at face value.

In a rare moment of seriousness, Guy looked over at Genma with a stern frown "Well they are going to have to go out again eventually. Why don't you see if you can get someone else to go with you? Either a tokubetsu jōnin or a normal one?"

"You really think the Hokage would go for that?" Genma asked, wondering idly if he could convince the old man that it really would be for the best.

"I don't see why not. Besides it would give the kids an extra amount of security and you extra eyes. I would suggest someone that they trust." Guy answered, before turning to bellow at the kids that they were going to do a three-on-three match.

Once the kids acknowledged what they were told, the two adults turned back to their conversation. "I'll meet with him tomorrow and see if he'll go for it." Genma told the man. Then he allowed a moment of silence to pass before he asked, "Hey would you mind if I told my team about our run-in with the seven Swordsmen of the Mist?"

"Thank you for your thoughtfulness; go ahead and tell them. I think it might do them some good." Guy answered proudly, striking up his normal pose.

With their conversation over, the two jōnin then turned to watch the kids engaging in an all-out fight with each other.

Ino and Tenten were currently locked in on each other, neither giving up or gaining any ground in their fight. Though it was clear that the older girl had more experience, the younger one was too stubborn to give up that easily.

Shikamaru was trying and failing miserably against Neji. The byakugen wielder was faster, stronger, and ruthless against his opponent. Shikamaru could feel his tenketsu points being shut down with each hit of the gentle fist.

Shino was not faring much better against Lee. He was barely able to keep up his guard against the taijutsu user. As he leapt forward to try and catch Lee off guard, he realized too late that he had made a mistake. The bushy brow kid dropped to the ground, and came back up a second later behind Shino. He executed a round-house kick to his back and knocked the Aburame into a tree.

That was when all hell broke loose.

"SHINO!" Ino screamed, Orochimaru's face all she could see. He was smirking at her as she stalked towards her, grotesque and terrifying. The sunlight that was once lighting the field became pale moonlight. And if she looked to the side, all Ino could see were the mangled bodies of her teammates and sensei in front of her.

She needed to act fast to save them.

The blonde could feel the chakra ripping from her body as a dim voice fading into the background told her that it wasn't real. But it had to be! She could see the face of that mad-man laughing manically as he came towards her.

Throwing her arm up, she lashed out with her chakra. But it was doing nothing to the crazed man. He just crept closer and closer!

"INO!" Genma shouted at her as soon as he realized what was happening and why she was using her chakra as a weapon to attack Team Guy.

Tenten was on the ground holding her head as tears fell from her eyes. It was like her head was being constantly barraged by sledge hammers. As her teammates ran over to help her, they unknowingly entered the small attack range that Ino had created and were assaulted in the same manner as their teammate.

The three members of team Guy were on the ground at her feet, holding their heads hoping the pain would stop soon. But Ino didn't know this. In her mind, all she could see was Orochimaru.

Shino upon noticing what was happening his blonde teammate, froze. His kikaichū began buzzing around agitatedly in his body, noticing his emotional response. He knew exactly where she was, because he was there too. He didn't move from his spot. He wanted to help. But he couldn't. How could he when he had failed the first time?

Shikamaru, unlike his teammates, was not caught in his own mind. Instead, he was held back by Might Guy from going near his teammate. "Let me go! She needs help!" He screamed at the teacher. But it did no good, he couldn't break out of the hold.

As soon as Genma entered the attack range, he was surprised he wasn't assaulted with her chakra. He didn't have time to think about that though, for he needed to get the girl to stop. Grabbing her by the shoulders, he tried to shake her, but that did nothing.

"Ino, stop now!" He yelled at the girl, trying in vain to get her to understand that they weren't in Miura anymore. "You're safe! You're in Konoha!"

Realizing that yelling and shaking her weren't doing anything, he knew he had one last shot before he would have to knock her out. The senbon user raised his right hand and slapped her across the face. Hard.

Oh, her dad was going to _pissed_ about that.

But it seemed as if it had worked. The girl blinked her eyes and he could see her eyes getting clearer. "Sensei?" She seemed unsure as to what had happened, as she looked into his eyes, she had tears welling in her own.

"It's alright kid. You had a panic attack." He explained to the girl before moving her away from the rest of Team Guy who were picking themselves up off the ground. He met Guy's gaze and with a quick nod of his head, the other let go of Shikamaru.

Shikamaru stumbled forward and over to his friend. He immediately put his hand on her shoulder, and only furrowed his eyebrow when she flinched slightly before relaxing once she saw it was him.

Ino felt her legs give way, and that was the only warning before she was a boneless pile of sobbing mess. Shikamaru cursed under his breath, and sat down next to the girl. Wrapping his arm around her shoulders, he pulled her into a one armed hug while she cried onto his shoulder.

-*()*-

"What the hell was that?" Neji questioned, as he brushed the dust off his clothes. He couldn't believe that frail looking girl was the cause of that.

"Neji that's very un-youthful of you;" Guy admonished his student. Gathering his students, he began directing them off the field, knowing that training was effectively over for the day.

"Some _shinobi_ , she can't even keep her emotions under control." The Hyuga hissed under his breath, angered glare on his face.

"Stop it! She had a panic attack, it wasn't like she meant to harm us." Tenten snapped at the boy. She felt bad for the blonde, and she wasn't so sure she wouldn't do the same if she were in Ino's shoes.

"Neji, their first mission led to her being kidnapped by Orochimaru. And them all being in the hospital for a few days afterwards." Guy explained as he and his students walked away.

Neji let out a snort, he would never be so weak as that. The incident only proved his theory about the girl, she was destined to be useless.

-*()*-

Genma looked over to where Shino stood frozen. A yell of his name broke the boy out of his trance and he trotted over to his two teammates. But he moved stiffly, as if unsure of his movements.

"Sit down Shino," The senbon user told the boy. The boy sat down on the other side of Ino so she was in-between the two. Genma sat down in front of the group and patiently waited for Ino to calm down. The once lively group kids were now a quiet broken bunch.

"I'm going to tell you all a story. You see back when I was a genin and on a team with Might and Ebisu we had an unfortunate run in with the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist." Genma then began telling the story. One he hoped would help his minions through their problems.

* * *

 **Yamanaka Compound**

Ino was curled up in a ball as she gripped her pillow against her chest. Her thoughts were solely focused on what had happened earlier at the training grounds. She hadn't meant to attack them, or to hurt anyone. She berated herself for being so weak as to succumb to her emotions like that. Neither Shino nor Shikamaru had been so reckless!

Blue pupil-less eyes flickered up to her door when she heard it open. In the doorway stood Inoichi and Fū. Her eyes dropped back down; she didn't want their pity.

"Princess, what happened today wasn't your fault." Inoichi tried to reason with his daughter, knowing fully well she was blaming herself for it.

Ino let out a snort full of self-loathing and told her dad, "Yes it was. If I hadn't been so stupid and weak then I wouldn't have done that."

"Ino, you are not stupid. Or weak. You had a panic attack, and quite frankly it's surprising it didn't happen before now;" Fū told the girl, before mentioning; "Most Anbu members have some form of them, or of PTSD. It's not a weakness. I still have nightmares, so does Torune."

"Really? How do you deal with it?" Ino asked, a small part of her hoping for some miracle, like perhaps they would go away soon.

"One day at a time. It also helps to know that there are people who you can talk to." Fū told his younger cousin. It wasn't an easy journey, but it did help having other people there to talk to about it.

"How about we all go downstairs, drink some hot chocolate and play cards." Inoichi offered, knowing that would get his daughter out of bed and hopefully out of the depressive state she was in.

Ino nodded her head and began to uncurl her body from around the pillow and blankets. Once her feet touched the ground, the girl all but launched herself at her dad. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she buried her head into his chest.

Inoichi wrapped one arm around her shoulders to hold her, and used his other hand to run it over her hair, smoothing it back into place. Seeing that Fū didn't seem like joining in on his own, Inoichi used the hand that had been smoothing down Ino's hair to grab his nephew, and pulled him into the family hug.

* * *

 **Hokage Office (Next Morning)**

Genma stood in front of the Hokage's desk as they went the metaphorical round 2 in the argument. "I'm saying the only way I will accept this mission is if you let Anko go with us."

"Why do you want her to go with you?" Hiruzen asked exasperatedly. Really, he was missing the times when Genma wouldn't question him or his methods. But those days seemed so far away now...

"Because it will be perfect for the undercover mission. Not to mention, you said that she is the best at infiltration other than me. And those kids are still not okay, I need someone else there to help me keep an eye on them."

"Fine. Anko can go with you on this mission. But you do understand that you need to move past this." The Hokage warned his former bodyguard, ready for this meeting to be over.

"Tell me something I don't know already." Genma snapped, barely keeping his tone civil. He knew he was toeing the line of insolence and his former position would only offer so much protection.

"That's a dangerous statement, for there are many things you do not know, and there are even more things which should be kept secret." The Sarutobi said monotonously, leveling the senbon enthusiast with a disinterested look.

"You're annoyingly cryptic, old man." Genma grumbled out, doing the customary bow; he turned on his heel and began to walk out of the office.

"I try." Was the response the brunet heard as the door closed behind him.

* * *

 **Training Grounds 2**

The three genins were already waiting by the tree when Genma got there. He could see the tension in their shoulders and quickly realized they thought they were going to get in trouble for yesterday.

Once he was close enough, he motioned for them to sit down and plopped down in front of them.

"So, kiddies we have another mission." Genma said without preamble. He could see the shock in their eyes, apparently, they didn't think they weren't getting another one anytime soon.

"Sensei are you sure that's a good idea?" Questioned Shino as he glanced at the blonde.

"Yeah, we need to get back out in the field. Having one bad experience on a mission shouldn't stop you from being shinobi." Genma told the group.

"So where are we going?" The Nara heir asked, head tilted the side as he studied their sensei.

"Oh, it will be great! We're going to Suna and its supposed to be a month-long mission." The senbon user told his group of minions. He wasn't that excited about it, but maybe it would do them some good. Deciding it was best to give them the good news, he added; "And Anko is coming with us."

The group immediately lit up at the thought of having the snake nin with them. Maybe she could show them some more tricks.

Genma just laughed lightly at the look on their faces, even Shino looked happy at that announcement. "Blondie, you are going to have to wear contacts and dye your hair for this." He told the girl, knowing fully well to expect a fight from her.

"But why?" She asked incredulously, her hair and eyes were some of her best features. She was always complimented on them by either the elders of her clan or people in the market.

"Because platinum blonde hair and bright blue pupil-less eyes stick out. Not to mention your dad is in the bingo books over there so it wouldn't take a genius to figure out you're his daughter." He explained to Ino.

"What about a henge?"

"Too risky. They have sensors there, and I haven't taught you all how to hide your chakra while using a henge yet." He shot down that argument.

Pouting the girl knew she couldn't disobey her sensei. But she had never dyed her hair before, and very much doubted either of the males at her home knew how to either.

"So why wouldn't they know we are shinobi if they have sensors there?" Shikamaru questioned, wondering how they were supposed to pull off the mission if they didn't know how to hide their chakra.

"All of your chakra levels are pretty much at a civilian level right now, so it won't set off any red flags. But using a henge requires chakra and they would notice." Genma answered easily, although with slight annoyance. It seemed they were getting better at asking the right questions.

"Wait, what is a bingo book?" Shino questioned, realizing that while he had heard his dad and Torune talk about it a few times, they never explained what it was.

"Bingo books are books in each shinobi village that list the enemies of that particular village and the amount they are worth. Some books have overlapping shinobi so some are worth more in different villages." The senbon user told the group, tapping a finger against his chin he added; "I'll get you the book for this village, and I expect you to have it memorized by the time we are finished with the Suna mission."

The children nodded their heads in unison, understanding it was best to know who their enemies were.

Changing the subject, Ino questioned; "Sensei what are we doing for training today?"

"Oh, I am so glad you asked that pumpkin! Here everyone take a piece of paper." He handed each one a small piece of paper. He began explaining, "These papers will let me know what your natural elemental chakras are. All you need to do is push some chakra onto the papers. Here watch me."

He held up his piece of paper, and a few moments later it ignited and turned to ash. "You see mine is Fire. Now each of you push a little bit of chakra onto the papers."

The three genin held up their papers and pushed their chakras onto them. Ino's wrinkled up in her hand, while Shino's split in two and Shikamaru's turned into dirt and crumbled. The three looked at their sensei and saw the absolute glee on his face.

"Do you all know how wonderfully ironic this is?" He questioned rhetorically before continuing, "All of your elemental natures match your clan arts. It's a very rare thing to have happen. Princess you have a lightning affinity. Shades you have wind. And deer boy you have earth."

"Sensei, I'm not sure I'm understanding how our elemental natures match up with our clan arts." Ino murmured, sure she could kind of understand Shino's but not how her's or Shikamaru's matched to theirs.

"Alright let me break it down for you. Princess you have a lightning affinity. With your mind jutsus you could theoretically shut down specific parts of a person's body or just fry their brain." He told her, as he pointed a finger in her direction.

"Pineapple head you have an earth affinity. With that you can create holes in the ground to elongate your shadow and capture more people when you have the chakra for it." Genma said as he moved his finger that was pointing at Ino to Shikamaru.

"Bug boy you have a wind affinity. With your bugs, you can either disperse them more easily or compress them in on someone." The finger moved from Shikamaru to Shino.

"Now we aren't going to start training on your elemental natures yet. We'll start on that when we get back from Suna. Today, my little gremlins, you will be working on chakra control. Each of you take out a kunai. Now you see those three trees behind you, you are going to practice chakra control by climbing up them only using your feet." The senbon enthusiast told his group.

Once he demonstrated how to do it, he stepped back and watched as they attempted it.

"You'll want a running start." He informed the group after the first few failed attempts of just walking up the tree.

As he watched them, he was proud that they seemed to understand how to do it and could easily do it. The man supposed it could have something to do with them all being clan heirs and had started their ninja training before the academy.

While Ino possessed the most amount of control, it was easy to see that Shino had the most amount of chakra out the group. The team continued training for the next several hours, only taking small breaks throughout the rest of the training session.

* * *

 **Hokage Tower (Later that night)**

The room was buzzing with all kinds of conversations. After Danzō's death, the Hokage implemented a new policy: Every month the clans would have a get-together. So, every month, the clans: Aburame, Akimichi, Hatake, Hyūga, Inuzuka, Nara, Sarutobi, Uchiha, and Yamanaka would have their leaders and families get together for a party.

Shikaku and Fugaku were playing shoji while discussing cold cases that the police force couldn't solve. The method had helped solve several cases, and even connected a few together.

Chouza was near the buffet table, while Inoichi had been flitting around from group to group talking to everyone. The matriarch of the Inuzuka clan was loudly telling stories about her missions to anyone who was within hearing range.

Hiashi and Shibi stood back away from most people, making polite conversation with each other.

"I heard you went on a mission with the Ino-Shika-Chou formation." Hiashi said, disdain lacing his voice. He didn't like any of them; Shikaku was too lazy, Inoichi talked too much, and Chouza always ate. He would have never stooped to going on a mission with them.

"Our kids were almost murdered; did you think we would do nothing?" Shibi questioned, head titled slightly to the side, his monotone hiding the underlying irritation at the man.

Hiashi made a minuscule movement with his shoulders, almost like he was shrugging. Shibi politely excused himself from Hiashi and slowly let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding as he walked away from the Hyūga.

"Now Tsume, you know it did not happen like that." Shibi said as he walked towards the woman who was retelling a story about a mission they had during their genin time.

The woman let out a bark of laughter and her mouth curved upward as she looked towards her former teammate. He was a reliable person and an even better shinobi. Though perhaps the best thing to her was the fact that he never seemed terrified of her. And when even her own husband had run away from her, it was quite the treat.

-*()*-

Shikamaru was lazing against the wall furthest from the festivities when he was approached by Chouji.

"Hey man." The Akimichi greeted while chomping down on a bag of chips.

Shikamaru gave a short wave to his friend and asked, "How's your team doing?"

"Oh, they're okay I guess. Hinata is nice, Sasuke not so much." Answered Chouji before he asked, "How's your team?"

"They're good. Ino is Ino and Shino is pretty cool." Drawled the Nara as his eyes searched the room to find his teammates.

Making a sound of acknowledgement, Chouji asked a question that had been bugging him; "Shikamaru why did our dads and Shino's dad go on that mission?"

Knowing he couldn't lie to his friend, he decided on a half-truth; "Oh we had a mission and ran into some trouble. They just went to go clean it up."

"Then who was that man that they brought back and why did he try to reach for Ino?"

Shikamaru forgot that Chouji could be extremely perceptive when it came down to the really important things. As his mind raced through different answers he could give him, he was saved by the arrival of Ino. That girl could talk her way out of anything.

Well... At least that was what the Nara had expected. He had been wrong.

"He drugged me, tied me up, and then gave me over to Orochimaru to experiment on." The Yamanaka answered simply, which left Shikamaru having to resist the urge to face-palm.

After a few moments of silence, Chouji said the only thing he could think of; "Oh."

The three were interrupted when Hinata brushed past them with tears in her eyes. As Chouji went to follow his teammate to find out why she was upset, Ino held up her hand to stop him.

"Let me talk to her. Girls usually understand each other better." Was all the blonde said before she followed the other out to the hallway.

-*()*-

Out in the hall, Hinata sank down to the ground and pulled her knees up to her chest. She knew her father thought that she was weak; but she never thought he would go as far as to point it out during the party to a member of the Sarutobi clan, and a _sensei_ at that.

"Hey Hinata, are you alright?" Ino asked as she neared the girl. Squatting down in front of her, she balanced herself on the balls of her feet

"I-I-I'm okay." The blue haired girl stuttered out. Ino had always intimidated her by always being so sure of who she was.

"I'm going to call bullshit on that answer. What happened?" The blonde pressed, knowing fully well it wouldn't do the other girl any good to let an emotional wound fester.

"M-my dad. He t-told Sarutobi-san that I w-wasn't f-f-fit to be a h-heiress." Hinata mumbled and then added, "H-he thinks I am weak."

"What?! I mean sure you lack confidence, and you stutter over every word you say. But that doesn't mean that you're weak." Ino snapped, angry at the girl's father for saying something like that.

"But I _am_ weak. I bet you never had to deal with that." Hinata mumbled into her knees once she dropped her head back down.

"You're right." Ino said, watching as the other girl flinched, "My dad never said I was weak. That was all the clan elders. They still make snide comments about how I shouldn't be the heir, it should be my cousin Fū. But it doesn't make me doubt myself, if anything it makes me train harder. Not for them, but for me. To prove that I can be the next Yamanaka clan leader."

Ino stood up and thrust her hand into Hinata's face. The short haired girl took the offered hand, and was pulled onto her feet.

"Hinata the choice is yours. You can either go through your life letting what other people think of you weigh you down and torture yourself trying to become that person, or you can get off your ass and do something about it!" Ino told the girl and pulled her into a hug.

Hinata smiled shyly into Ino's shoulder as she considered the words. They were harsh, but necessary. "Thank you," she told the blonde sincerely.

"Come on, let's get back to the party!" Ino giggled as she grabbed onto the ex-heiress's hand and pulled her back into the room.

* * *

 **Shushuya**

The Jōnin were sitting at their normal table and laughing about the antics of the genin teams.

"I swear those two are a handful!" Asuma exclaimed, cigarette dangling from the side of his mouth. "Naruto and Kiba keep trying to steal my cigarettes and smoke them!" He had just gotten to the bar a few minutes ago since the mandatory get-together with the clans was over. The bearded man still couldn't believe the nerve of Hiashi Hyūga.

Even though Hinata wasn't on his team, he felt bad for her. But she was with Kurenai. Hopefully the woman could do something to help her.

"Better than my team, Hinata is so painful shy, Chouji doesn't want to fight at all, and Sasuke thinks both are holding him back." Kurenai spoke, glancing at her not-so secret boyfriend. It wasn't an advertised relationship, but it wasn't hidden either.

"I've got both of you beat." Genma said, rolling the senbon around in his mouth. "The day after mine were released from the hospital, they broke into Anbu headquarters to drop off cookies for the rescue team."

Kurenai's eyes widened almost comically and Asuma's cigarette actually fell out of his mouth. A quick string of muttered curses left the man's mouth as the Sarutobi patted down his pants where the cigarette had landed.

"Well that was a youthful activity for them!" Guy boomed, making several heads swivel in their direction.

"Yeah it was great. They also found out that the two 'guards' from their first test were Anbu." The senbon enthusiast told them as he eyed Kakashi and Tenzō. The two just shook their heads remembering the antics of the team.

"How exactly did they break in?" Kurenai asked, curious since the Anbu headquarters was hidden and the only ones who knew where it was were either Anbu or the Hokage.

"Two of them have cousins in Anbu, so they knew sort of where it was and then some dumbass newbie left the door open." Genma answered, while his eyes darted to the door that had just opened to reveal Anko.

Waving the woman over, she slid into the booth. "Genma my love, you are amazing!" She told the man as she stole his next shot of sake.

"Stop stealing my drinks. And why am I amazing today?" He asked warily, vaguely wondering if he needed to become a missing nin or not.

"Because I got briefed on the mission! I can't wait to take the kiddies out!" The snake nin answered easily.

"Thank Guy for that. It was his idea." Genma told the woman pressed into his side. He really wished she understood the meaning of personal boundaries.

Anko's eyes lit up as she swiveled her head to look at Guy. Konoha's green beast gave the woman a thumb's up and a thousand-watt smile. She unpeeled herself from Genma's side and before anyone could realize what was happening, she threw her arms around Guy's neck and kissed him soundly on the cheek.

The redness of his face was the only proof as to what had just happened since the woman disappeared right after.

* * *

 **Civilian Apartments**

Ino had been pacing outside of the apartment door for the past five minutes. She was nervous because she wasn't sure how the older woman would react to having a teenager show up on her doorstep. Taking a breath to steady herself, she raised her hand to knock and the door opened before her.

"I thought you were going to continue pacing for another five minutes." Yukina smiled softly as she looked down at the petite girl in front of her door. "Do you need something?"

Yukina was a beautiful woman, with her light brown hair piled into a bun on top of her head with a red ribbon holding it in place, brownish-red pupil-less eyes, a small mouth with wrinkles near it that showed she aged well. The woman was wearing a dark teal high-collared dress with an aquamarine colored gem just below the collar.

"Umm, if you're busy I can leave." Ino mumbled while looking at the ground and hiding a bag behind her back.

"Nonsense, come inside and tell me what's on your mind." Yukina told the younger girl, her door was opened a little wider to invite the other in.

Ino walked in through the door and toed of her sandals in the entry way. She then followed Yukina into the living room.

"Now what's going on?" The older woman questioned softly again.

"Well you see I'm going on another mission tomorrow, except I have to dye my hair for it. And my dad and cousin don't know how to dye hair. And I don't know how to do it. But my sensei said I had to have it done before the mission because I can't just cover it up. And I really, really need help." The girl rambled while she paced back and forth in the living room.

Yukina blinked a few times as she processed what she had just been told. She smiled softly at the girl and told her, "Of course I help you. Come on, first thing you need to know about dying hair; you do it in the bathroom. It's easier to clean up."

The woman wrapped her right arm around the young blonde and led her back to the bathroom. "Let's see what you have here."

Ino set the bag that was filled with hair dyes down, she had grabbed several bottles in different brands and colors, unsure as to what to get.

"Alright, when dying your hair, it's best to keep to one brand." Yukina said as she browsed through the selection that was now sitting on her counter. "Also with the length of your hair, you'll need to use at least two bottles if not three of hair dye."

Grabbing a brand, she knew wouldn't be horrible on the girl's hair, she began to show her how to dye hair.

* * *

 **Front Gate (Next Morning)**

Ino was the first to arrive at the gate, fifteen minutes before the actual meeting time, and found a wagon with Genma's name written on a small paper tied to the side. It was odd, but she guessed it was for the mission.

As she waited, the girl busied herself with playing with her now honey brown hair. She was self-conscious about her newly dyed hair. But Yukina and her father had assured her that it looked fine on her.

The girl watched as her senseis approached, talking in low voices so she couldn't make out what was being said.

"Nice hair princess." Genma said by way of greeting. He handed the girl a bingo book that he picked up last night from mission control. "Remember I'll be testing you on that when we get back from Suna. Also, make sure to hide it while we are there."

Anko smiled at the girl as she plucked the small paper off of the wagon, "Brown's not a bad eye color for you, kid." She smirked at the small frown sent her way, then asked, "Are the contacts bothering your eyes?"

Ino nodded her head, it felt like her eyes were dried out and itched. She was just happy that her father had made sure she packed a few bottles of eye drops.

"It will be like that until your eyes adjust to it. Should take about a week." The woman informed the girl, remembering her first time when she had to wear contacts for a mission.

Shikamaru and Shino sauntered up to the group, arriving right on time. They both did a double-take when they saw Ino.

Genma was just thankful that none of them had worn their normal ninja outfits. He had meant to say something, but it had slipped his mind.

Ino was in dark blue capris with a light blue short-sleeved shirt and black sandals. Shikamaru wore a green t-shirt with black cargo pants and black sandals. While Shino was covered in black head to toe, black sunglasses, black turtleneck sweater, black pants, black sandals.

'The kid looks like he's going to a funeral.' Genma thought wryly. Once he handed the two bingo books to the boys, he told the gremlins; "Alright, get on the back of the wagon. We are doing this fully civilian way, that includes traveling."

The wagon was attached to two oxen, and contained a multitude of boxes varying in size. The kids clambered into the back while Genma and Anko sat up front to drive the oxen.

"Sensei what's our cover while we are there?" Ino asked, curious as to what could be in all the boxes.

"You'll love it! We are an adoring family that is opening up a clothing store in Suna." Anko answered as Genma got the cart moving.

The three shared a look, and a single thought crossed their minds; 'How on Earth were they going to pull that off?'

* * *

Next Time:

"Who are you?" Shino questioned as he watched the sand move back into the gourd like it had a mind of its own.

"Gaara," was the one-word reply from the boy with red hair and the kanji word for love tattooed on his forehead.


	6. Welcome to Suna

Author's Note: Thank you to all who have reviewed, favorited, followed, or just read the story. Shout out to Varmint for being my amazing beta and putting up with all my craziness when it comes to the details of the story. I do not own anything other than the plotline of this story.

* * *

 **Road to Suna**

"Alright minions, what's our cover?" Genma asked as he glanced back at the children.

They had traveled for almost two weeks through Fire Country and into Wind Country and were about to reach the gates of Suna. And for the past two weeks Anko and Genma had beaten the importance of knowing their covers into the heads of the genin.

"I'm Iori and 11 years old. I love fashion, and flowers. My brothers are _meh_." The girl stuck her tongue out in disgust, which made Genma nod at her acting skills. "My parents are civilians who wanted to expand our horizons by taking us to a new desolated desert and opening up a shop there." Ino's whole reply was cheeky yet tired, for she was worn out and in desperate need of a bath.

"Satoru. I hate you all." Shikamaru drawled while he watched the clouds go by from the back of the cart. Really, they had done this over a hundred times now. It was troublesome to have to repeat the same things over and over again.

"Satoshi. I'm the oldest and responsible for these two. I have a skin condition which is why I wear long sleeves." Shino replied, all the while he idly wondered if either of his teammates had already considered seppuku as a viable alternative. His bugs swarmed agitatedly at that line of thinking, apparently, they were not impressed by it.

"What's my name?" Genma asked as he steered the cart.

"Dad," was chorused by all three genin.

Genma could feel his eyebrow twitch just slightly, really these kids with their smartass answers. "Fine. What's our last name?"

"Kimura. We came from a civilian town on the outskirts of Fire Country." Ino answered, more than aware of the annoyance rolling off the two boys in the back of the wagon with her.

"Chickadees you should get some sleep. We'll get to Suna within two hours then we'll have a long night ahead of us with getting everything set up;" Anko told the kids with a smirk on her face, rather amused with their actions.

"Yes mom," Was the chorus of groans that came from the children, then they all laid down to get a quick nap before they arrived to Suna.

* * *

 **Konoha**

Asuma was grumbling to himself as he walked up the steps to the Hokage's office. He liked his team, he really did. But there were times that the two boys made him want to throw them off a cliff. And of course, they had joined forces to pester him about getting a higher-ranking mission than the few D-ranks that they had been doing.

Taking a breath, and really wishing he could smoke inside, the Sarutobi knocked on the door. Once he was permitted, the man opened the door and walked into the office.

He moved to the middle of the room, and stood at attention in front of his father... His father... The same man that had made him leave Konoha all those years ago, so he could see what else there was to find in the world.

"Hokage-sama, I came to ask you if you possibly had any C-Rank missions that could be assigned to my team." Asuma said, eyes never straying as he looked directly into the face of the elder man.

"Why?" Questioned the Hokage, since most genin teams weren't sent on any C-Ranked missions until they had a bit more training under their belt. The exception had been with Genma's team, and that had been because, at the moment assigned, they had not had complete knowledge of all of the actors and variables involved.

"My two boys; the Inuzuka and Uzumaki..." Asuma sighed in exasperation, feeling just about ready to beg to get some relief from the little demons, "They've been pestering me to get one."

"Do you think they are ready?" The Hokage questioned with an analytical eye, truly scrutinizing the man that stood before him.

Quite frankly, it took all of Asuma's willpower to not groan in exasperation. But he squared his shoulders and looked back at the man with the most determination he could muster, " _Yes_."

"Fine," The elder shrugged with a soft smirk, not missing the way Asuma's body deflated at the simplicity of his answer, "Here you go." He handed over a mission briefing he had received earlier that day, then reached into his desk to grab his pipe.

Asuma took the file and immediately began to read it over, nodding to himself occasionally. Once he had finished, he glanced up to meet his father's gaze.

"Any questions?" The elder Sarutobi questioned.

"No, this mission looks pretty cut and dry." Asuma responded, eyes straying back towards the mission brief.

It was a simple C-Rank mission to the Land of Waves. They were to escort a bridge builder by the name of Tazuna. A straightforward and uncomplicated mission on paper. A good one for his team to start off on for real ninja missions. And he was sure they would like this one, seeing how it would give them the chance to travel. And because they'd feel like they were doing something real, Kiba and Naruto may just finally calm down and stop bothering him so much.

Forming some quick hand signs, Asuma disappeared from the office in a puff of smoke without any further words.

* * *

 **Training Grounds 6**

"Our last match of the day will be between Sasuke and Hinata," Kurenai called out to the group before adding; "Good luck to the both of you."

Hinata could hear Ino's voice in her head, telling her to get better and stronger for herself, and to prove to everyone else that she could be strong. The blue-haired girl entered the ring with the black-haired boy.

The girl fell into a stance that she had known for most of her life, while the boy took a somewhat similar stance, except his hands were curled into fists. Then the match started. Pale eyes bulged out, a sign she was using her byakugan. And black eyes started to swirl with red, a sign the boy was using his sharingan.

The two met in the middle, Hinata taking a defensive strategy while Sasuke attacked her with an onslaught of punches and kicks. She could hear Ino's voice echoing around in her head telling her to get off her ass and prove them wrong. But she didn't think they were wrong, she truly thought was weak. She could barely keep up with the onslaught the boy had unleashed on her. The blue-haired girl wasn't strong; no, she wasn't Ino, or Sasuke, or even her younger sister. She was just meant to be a nobody.

"Why don't you just concede? You're weak and you won't win against me," Sasuke taunted, irritated that he had to fight someone so weak. If their training sessions were anything to go by, he was going to have to carry the weight of the entire team on his shoulders. He would get no help from either of them. He ignored the flinch he had invoked in his opponent as he kept attacking her.

Hinata could feel herself getting angry, not only at the words that he spoke; but at her entire situation. The girl felt rage at the words that she had heard from Sasuke, her father, her sister, and the whispers from those who thought she did not hear them. She was so sick and tired of hearing her inner demons voice their thoughts aloud. 'You can either be what everyone thinks you are, or you can get off your ass and do something about it.' Ino's voice echoed in her head, giving her strength.

Today would be the day that Hinata would prove someone wrong. Her eyebrows furrowed as she analyzed her opponent and realized he made a fatal mistake. In his thinking that she was too weak, he left open his chakra points.

Her fingers slammed in rapid succession into his points, and the Uchiha couldn't do anything about it even as he watched it happen. The match had ended in, seemingly, the blink of an eye. Sasuke was on the ground, trying to figure out where exactly he had messed up at, with Hinata standing near him breathing heavily.

* * *

 **Hokage's Office**

Kakashi stood at attention and blinked his uncovered eye. When he had been summoned earlier today, he had not been expecting this to be the result.

"Well what do you say?" Hiruzen asked the copy nin as he placed his head on top of his folded hands.

"It's an honor Lord Hokage. May I ask, why me?" Kakashi countered as he bowed slightly.

"Because the bodyguards of the Hokage is meant to be a three-man cell. And with Genma now gone, we need another person to fill that spot. Who better than one who was trained by the Fourth?"

"Thank you, sir."

Kakashi couldn't believe that the Hokage had wanted to pull him from active ANBU duty to become a member of the Hokage Guard Unit. It was an honor of the highest degree, but he couldn't help the vicious little voice in the back of his head saying he didn't deserve it. He couldn't save his father from the rumors and guilt, he couldn't save Obito from being a self-sacrificing idiot, he killed Rin accidently, he didn't help Minato or Kushina when they needed him during the Nine-Tails attack... His whole life had been composed of one failure after another.

"Effectively immediately, you will be removed from active ANBU duty. Training with both Radiou and Iwashi will begin tomorrow. They will need to teach you your part in the Flying Thunder God Formation." Hiruzen informed him, bringing Kakashi out of his reverie, and effectively ended their meeting.

* * *

 **Suna**

The heat was sweltering as the new family moved into their shop. Their home for the next month was located right above it. It was prime real-estate, in the heart of the village. Once they had finally unloaded the cart, which had taken them only two hours, they began to set up shop.

Leave it to Ino to get exasperated within the first five minutes though.

"No, that does not go there! You want the shop to flow seamlessly. Any underwear should be towards the back where the changing rooms are. Pants go over there, and shirts go over here! Don't even get me started on the color coding that has to happen!" Ino growled at Shikamaru when he kept mixing up where he was putting everything. It was like the boy didn't care! Thinking about it, she realized he probably didn't.

"Just go sit in the corner, I'll put everything where it needs to go." She ordered him as she grabbed the clothes in his hands before flitting off to start putting it in the right place.

Genma and Anko watched the entire interaction more than amused that the girl who was bossing the boys around. Shino at least had the sense to listen to her directions and put the things in the correct spot, so all she had to do was go through and arrange it in a way that suited every store she had ever been in.

"Alright kiddies, we're going to set-up the apartment. Princess you're in charge!" Anko jovially called out as she and Genma made their exit with the boxes marked for the apartment.

*-()-*

Seven hours later, the store was finally finished. Everything was in its proper place, and the boys had to admit that Ino did have a knack for organizing stores and keeping the ambiance feeling as if it were flowing comfortably. She had just finished up putting a few final touches on the mannequins that were displayed in the shop windows.

Shikamaru had taken to laying down on the floor in the middle of store, while Shino was sitting down on one of the chairs by the changing rooms. Both were hoping that she wouldn't ask for anymore help.

Ino had run both boys ragged today with her orders of what was supposed to be where in the store. Thankfully Genma and Anko had been spared from the blonde tyrant, she was more than happy to let the adults do their job of setting up the home above the shop.

"Come on minions, it's time to sleep." Genma murmured softly from the top of the stairs. He could see how tired they all were with as much work as they had done today.

Shino nodded his head and slowly got up from his chair. He dragged his feet over to where Shikamaru lay and pulled the other up to his feet.

"Come on Ino, let's go to sleep." Shikamaru tiredly drawled at the girl who was fiddling with the small jewelry selection they had.

"I'll be there in a bit!" She exclaimed a bit too cheerfully.

The truth was, she wasn't sure she could sleep. Lately her dreams had been plagued with the nightmares of their first mission. Each getting worse than the one before.

It would be like any other night for her, except instead of having a family member there to comfort her when she awoke screaming, it would be her team. And she didn't want to burden them with the guilt that had clawed its way into her gut.

The guilt that she had been so adamant as to defend that man. The guilt that if she hadn't been so blinded by willful ignorance, perhaps she wouldn't have subsequently been kidnapped, and almost gotten her team killed with a stupid, insane plan that had no way of working to begin with.

Shino furrowed his eyebrows, he could see the dark rings under her eyes and the sluggishness of her movements. It was a clear sign she was tired, but he wasn't sure why she was insisting on staying awake. Didn't she know that growing kids needed at least _nine_ hours of sleep?

"Boys go upstairs, Anko will show you where your room is." Genma dismissed them, he had a hunch that Ino wouldn't want to talk about what was going on in front of them.

The older male moved out of the way to allow the two younger ones to pass by him, then he made his way down the stairs. Stopping on the second to last step, he took a seat and watched silently as Ino kept fiddling around with different objects.

"Ino, come here;" He uttered as he motioned for her to sit in the empty space by him.

Brown eyes tracked her movements, and noticed several things that seemed _off_ about her. Her head hung low, her left cheek was hollowed out from biting the inside of it, and she seemed to shrink in on herself.

Genma felt his heart clench, she was hurting and he was at fault for it. If he had been paying closer attention, then perhaps, he could have avoided the entire fiasco with Orochimaru.

When the girl had finally sat down on the step beside him, he asked; "Are you having problems sleeping?"

Ino knew she couldn't lie to him, so she tried the next best thing, a half-truth; "I occasionally have nightmares. It's nothing too bad, I promise."

The look on his face told her that he wasn't fooled at all, and wanted the entire truth.

"Fine. I have nightmares every night. Is that what you wanted to know? Or did you want to know about how I imagine seeing your dead bodies over that field? Or how I can't even fight in my dreams, because they all end in the same way? How all I see is his face coming towards me, telling me about how he can't wait to start experimenting with me?!" She snarled out, angry at him for making her speak her worst nightmares aloud and even more so, at herself, for having the problems in the first place.

Genma swallowed the lump in his throat as he finally got a clue as to what she was going through, and found himself hating Orochimaru even more for what he put the kids through. The brunet lifted his arm from beside him and wrapped it around her shoulders.

He noticed immediately when she flinched at the contact. But relaxed when she realized, it wasn't her nightmare, it was her sensei. He pulled her to his chest and held her as the first tears started to fall.

The senbon enthusiast kept his arm wrapped around her shoulders as she cried against him. All he could do was hope that this would be enough for her. He heard Anko on the landing but didn't turn his head to look at her.

What she was doing became apparent enough when Ino's sobs tapered off and he could feel her breathing even out into shallow breaths. A sign that she was asleep.

With delicate movements, as to not jostle her too much, Genma picked her up, and nodded gratefully at Anko who held the door open for him to pass through.

When the two finally got the blonde into her bed roll, she hadn't moved at all, or woken up. Silently they left her room, and went into the living room.

"I used a genjutsu to put her to sleep. It should be a deep sleep that doesn't have nightmares. But I'll stay up and keep an eye on the kids tonight." Anko said as she picked up the coffee that had long grown cold while she had waited for Genma and Ino.

"Thanks, Anko, I forgot that the other two were having problems as well." Genma said honestly, and felt bad that he had forgotten that the boys were having their own problems in dealing with their first failed mission as well.

"Go to sleep baka," Anko told him with a snort. Just because the boys were keeping their problems hidden, didn't mean that they weren't there. But thankfully, she was more than adept at handling the nightmares that accompanied any run-in with her former teacher.

She only wished she had been there for the first mission. 'Oh, how I'd love to give you a taste of your own medicine Orochimaru.' She thought viciously as she watched Genma go into their shared room to retire for the night.

*-()-*

When Ino awoke next, she felt slightly better than she had in the past weeks. For once her dreams hadn't been plagued by nightmares conjured by her mind. She noticed then that the sun was already streaming into her room.

Once she was out of her bed, she crossed the room to her modest closet and began looking through the clothes that Iori would wear. The brunette decided to wear a modest summer dress. It was a dark blue color, with a light blue sash. It went down to her knees with capped sleeves and a slight v-neckline.

After she finished getting dressed, she went into the bathroom to finish getting ready. She wanted to do something different with her hair so she grabbed her brush and a few ribbons that matched the color of the sash. Ino parted her hair down the middle and split her hair over each shoulder.

She started on the left side and as she braided the hair, she worked the ribbon into it. The girl repeated the process to the right side, and soon had two braids, one over each shoulder, that had a light blue ribbon throughout each.

Then she proceeded to put in the contacts. She felt her eyes water at the uncomfortableness of the new weight. Blinking away the tears, she left the bathroom and went down the hall to the kitchen area.

Everyone else was already at the table eating breakfast by the time Ino had arrived. She took the only available seat left, in between Shino and Shikamaru. The latter offered a greeting by way of a grunt, while the former nodded his head towards her. She offered them both a smile as she placed some food on her plate.

Breakfast was a quite affair, until the kids had finished their breakfast. It was then that Genma decided to remove himself from the newspaper he had been reading. "One last time, what are your names?" He questioned them.

"Satoshi."

"Iori."

"Satori."

Anko decided now would be a good time to chime in, "Remember kids, that as soon as you leave here, you are those people. Think of it as a mask you have to wear while you're outside of this apartment. We can't afford to have any mistakes."

The three nodded their heads, even though they were anxious and worried about messing up, a bigger part of each of them was excited to see this new side of their missions.

* * *

 **Konoha (Training Ground 4)**

Asuma could feel his eyebrow twitch. He had spent the past ten minutes trying to get Naruto and Kiba to shut up so he could tell them about the new mission. The only saving grace was that Sakura was sitting there trying to get them shut up as well.

"Come on Asuma-sensei! We're ready! We can handle a C-Rank mission, hell we could handle an A-Rank one!" Kiba shouted before being hit on the head by Sakura. "Owww, what the hell?!"

"Stupid! Shut up! Sensei is trying to tell us about our next mission. Geez, you two need to learn respect." Sakura shouted back at the boy while she waved her fist in his face.

"Enough! All of you sit down!" Asuma snapped at the group, slightly satisfied that they all looked reasonably ashamed of themselves.

Once the group was sitting down, the Jōnin began to explain to his team, "I talked to the Hokage, and he agreed to give us a C-Rank Mission. We will be escorting a man named Tazuna back to Wave Country so he can finish building his bridge. We leave tomorrow morning."

Naruto and Kiba both jumped up and started cheering loudly, which made Asuma just smile and shake his head. The kids were happy... But... Well, he couldn't help the nagging feeling that was slowly beginning to ebb its way into his gut. "Who wants to get ramen?" He questioned the group as they talked animatedly about finally getting a C-Rank.

* * *

 **Suna**

Ino gritted her teeth as she felt Shino's eyes on the back of her head _again_. Ever since last night's incident, both Shikamaru and Shino had been watching her like hawks. It was driving the girl insane, and she knew that that she was dangerously close to losing her temper on the both of them.

Thankfully they had hit a lull in customers, surprisingly their first day had been met with lots of enthusiasm from the people of Suna. Apparently, they were happy about having a new clothing store.

"Mom, I'm going to go explore the city. I'll be back in a bit!" Ino told Anko, making sure to keep their cover intact.

"Alright sweetie, be careful;" Anko advised the younger girl, as she went to help the new customer that had just walked through the door.

As Ino walked towards the front of the store, she noticed both Shikamaru and Shino move to follow her. "Stay here!" She ordered both of them, feeling _slightly_ bad that she had yelled at her teammates, but the girl needed a break.

Ino slipped out of the store and happily meandered down the street. She didn't have a specific destination in mind, but was more than happy that she wouldn't have to be around her two hovering "brothers" for a few minutes.

The brunette girl wandered through the town square and over to a town directory. She read over the signs thoughtfully, before deciding to go visit the botanical garden it boasted. Once she made sure she had the directions correct, she set off to find the garden.

-*()*-

Ino walked through the small greenhouse, taking in the native flowers. In her mind, she was repeating all of the information she knew about the flowers. She placed her fingers gently against the sepal, under the flower, and leaned down to get a better whiff of the smell.

"Careful now, that flower is poisonous;" a voice cautioned from behind her.

The girl turned her head to look at the newcomer. It was a boy about her age, in black baggy clothing, with a weird headdress and purple paint spread across his face.

"Oh, it is?" She questioned, pretending like she wasn't already aware of the fact.

"Yeah it is. Are you new to town? I don't think a pretty girl like you would have escaped my notice before now." The unknown boy told her, and smirked when a blush adorned her cheeks.

"Yes, I am. My family just moved here. We actually opened up that new clothing store!" Ino excitedly mentioned as she gestured with her hands.

"Be careful in here pretty girl, wouldn't want you to get hurt;" He warned her.

"Then perhaps, you should escort me around. You know, keep me safe;" She said as tilted her head to the side.

-*()*-

Ino returned to shop an hour later with a promise from the boy- apparently named Kankurō- to come by tomorrow to show her around the rest of the city.

The bell above the shop jingled, signaling her entrance into the store. Thankfully the store was just as busy as it had been before the lull that had allowed her escape. The young girl dove head first into helping customers that were running rampant.

For the next several hours, the Kimura family helped out all of customers that had come into the store. Once the bell chimed and signaled the exit of the last customer, Shikamaru collapsed onto one of the chairs by the changing rooms.

Both Shino and Ino snorted at their teammate, before they began to clean up the store. The silence had only lasted for a few minutes, before it was broken by Genma.

"So, princess, where did you go today?" He asked, as he started managing the cash register.

"I went to the botanical garden in town, and I met a boy there. He's a few years older than me. He said he'd stop by tomorrow to show me and my brothers around town tomorrow." She told him as she hung some clothes back onto the racks.

"Oh, and what was his name?" Anko asked as she started sweeping the floor.

"Kankurō."

Both Genma and Anko shared a look, but decided not to say anything else about the subject.

Once the store was cleaned, and everything back in its proper place, Shino turned to Anko and Genma and asked, "May I go explore?"

Both nodded their heads in consent, before Anko told him; "Be back in an hour. Dinner will be ready by then."

Shino nodded his head, and strolled out of the door and into the cool air of the night. The boy meandered down the streets, without much thought as to where he was going. He let his thoughts run as his body moved. As it seemed lately, his thoughts turned to their first mission, and guilt began to claw at his gut.

Guilt for not being able to do more. Guilt for not being able to protect his teammates from that homicidal maniac. Guilt for not being strong enough.

A shake of his head, kept his thoughts from going even darker; as he took in his surroundings. He looked around, and saw he was near Suna's Ninja Academy. Movement just barely in his peripheral vision to the right caught his eye. As he turned his head, he noticed a boy about his age.

The boy's red hair stood out in stark contrast to the muted browns of the buildings and dark of the night. What seemed to be the most interesting about him, thought, wasn't that. Instead, it was the giant gourd on his back.

The shadow that drew his eye in the first place, was creeping steadily up behind the boy. Shino realized that the boy didn't know. Didn't realize that the shadow coming up behind him, was there for one reason; to kill.

Before he could even think about it, he shouted to the kid. But it seems for naught, sand seeped out of the gourd and around the shadow, until it was completely covered.

In a flat voice, the boy intoned; "Sand coffin," and clenched his fist. The effect was immediate, the air began to reek of blood and the scream of who had been crushed by the sand.

The boy turned to look at his would-be savior, unsure as to if the other was actually trying to help, or just setting up another trap to try and kill him.

Shino could feel his kikaichū buzzing beneath his skin. Brought to life by the suffocating chakra of the other. He realized quickly, that he would be out of his own weight class, if the other should decide he was a threat.

However, it seemed as if his female teammate was rubbing off on him, and not any of the good characteristics either. He could feel the impulse to asks questions, and tried to hold his tongue.

"Who are you?" Shino asked, as he watched in fascination as the sand moved back into the gourd like it had a mind of its own.

He had been around Ino too much, it seemed.

"Gaara," was the reply from the red-headed boy with the kanji for love tattooed on his forehead.

* * *

Author's Note: And I'm leaving you there! And my lovely readers, you all have a choice to make!

Option A: Next Chapter is the Wave Arc featuring Team Asuma.

Option B: Next Chapter is a continuation of the Suna Mission, and I turn the Wave Arc into a one-shot.

Option C: Next Chapter is a continuation of the Suna Mission, and I just mention the Wave Arc, without getting into much detail about it.

Review or PM and let me know what you all would like to see! I promise, the next update isn't going to take months!


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